LDA DG allowed to keep post till court’s verdict

Karachi
The Sindh High Court on Friday modified its order regarding suspension of notification for appointment of Lyari Development Authority director general, directing that Agha Maqsood Abbas may hold the post till final decision of the court.
The new order came on a petition of Mohammad Saleem who had challenged the appointment of Agha Maqsood Abbas as the DG LDA for being contrary to the law and Supreme Court’s judgments.
The petitioner submitted that Abbas was an officer of the Karachi Building Control Authority and unlawfully and contemptuously occupying the office of the Lyari Development Authority director general on a cadre post of BPS-20 besides he has also been allowed an additional charge of the post of project director at the Shaheed Mohatrama Benazir Bhutto Town, Board of Revenue Sindh through a notification issued on January 16.
Petitioner’s counsel Barrister Zamir Ghumro stated that the post of LDA DG is a cadre post and no ex-cadre person could be appointed on the post. Besides, he submitted that the career of the respondent officer was tainted with charges of corruption and irregularities as much as his name was included in the final list of 33 corrupt officers of the province in the year 2000 and enquiries were also being conducted by the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) and Anti-Corruption against him in different cases.
He submitted that appointment of DG LDA has to be made by the chief executive of the province but in the said case the chief secretary has exercised the authority of chief executive of the province as such that the very appointment order was without jurisdiction.
He said that Abbas cannot be allowed to hold a cadre post and that too in sheer violation of the orders passed by the superior courts. The court was prayed to set aside the appointment of LDA DG and declare that all the acts and orders passed by him were without lawful authority as such void ab initio and legal proceedings under relevant law may be taken against him.
The counsel for the LDA DG, Yawar Farooqui submitted that post of DG was excluded from the cadre post by the chief minister through a notification on February 3, 2013 and the petition was not maintainable.
The officer of the services department produced copies of two revised schedules in which the LDA DG was shown as cadre post under head of field post through notification on December 16, 2011, however, such post was excluded from cadre on revised schedule issued on February 3, 2013.
Ghumro contended that cadre post could not be excluded from the schedule by the chief minister and submitted that respondent could not hold a cadre post which was excluded from schedule illegally.
The division bench, headed by Justice Mohammad Ali Mazhar, after adjourning the matter till February 6, modified the interim order.