CM not empowered to relax service rules: SC

Karachi
The Supreme Court held on Tuesday that the chief minister had no authority to relax service rules for promoting government servants.
The observation came on an appeal filed by the provincial government against the pro-forma promotion of retired deputy secretary Riaz Ahmed Masan by the Sindh Service Tribunal.
The government submitted that the service tribunal had failed to appreciate that the retired officer had failed to pass the pre-requisite departmental examination - the assistant controller part I and II.
The provincial law officer submitted that respondent was granted exemption from passing the exam and the chief minister had, taking it as a special case, issued a notification on September 23, 2003 promoting Masan to the post of the deputy secretary on December 12, 2005.
A two-member bench of the apex court headed by Justice Amir Hani Muslim observed that the officers who had not passed the departmental exam should have been reverted. The court observed that after the 1973 Constitution, the chief minister had no power to relax the rule by exercising his authority under the West Pakistan Civil Servant rules.
The court observed that after the 1973 Constitution, the civil service structure was changed and exercising such powers was in conflict with Article 240 and 242 of the Constitution.
The court issued notices to the advocate general to submit comments as ti whether the fundamental rights of other civil servant were being hampered or not by exercising such rules.
The court also directed the law officer to submit a list of government servants who were promoted by the provincial government without passing the required exam.

Pollution case
The apex court directed the Board of Revenue secretary to hold a meeting with industrial associations and other stakeholders to resolve the issue of the provision of land for the installation of sewerage treatment plants in industrial zones concerned.
Hearing identical petitions filed against industrial waste pollution on the city’s harbour and in coastal areas, an apex court’s two-member bench led by Justice Amir Hani Muslim took exception over the non-compliance of the court directives by the Board of Revenue despite a lapse of six months.
The court had directed the board to hold a meeting with the Korangi Association of Trade and Industry to solve the issue.
The court directed the Board of Revenue secretary to hold the meeting and submit a compliance report by Wednesday (today). The court also directed the officials of the Karachi Water and Sewerage Board, the KATI and the DHA to appear before the court on Wednesday.