Petition against caretaker CM: PHC orders AG to submit reply in 7 days

PESHAWAR: The Peshawar High Court (PHC) on Thursday gave a last chance to advocate general KP to submit a reply within seven days in a writ petition against the appointment of Justice (Retd) Dost Mohammad Khan as the province’s caretaker chief minister.

A two-member bench comprising Justice Qalandar Ali Khan and Justice Muhammad Ayub directed Abdus Samad Bannu, advocate general, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, to submit a written reply within a week time or else the court would decide the case on merit.

On the previous hearing, the court had given a week time to AG after he requested the court that he just took charge of his office and sought time for submission of reply. However, the AG on Thursday again sought two weeks time for submission of reply.

A Nowshera-based lawyer, Syed Azizuddin Kakakhel, had filed the petition requesting the court to declare the caretaker chief minister’s appointment illegal and ask the respondents, including the country’s president and chief election commissioner, to fill out the position in line with Articles 62 and 63 of the Constitution.

He requested the court for an interim relief by stopping the chief minister from functioning until a final disposal of the petition.

The petitioner said Justice (Retd) Dost Mohammad Khan was appointed an additional judge of the PHC on September 10, 2002, and thereafter elevated as permanent judge of the court on September 10, 2003. He said Dost Mohammad was appointed the PHC chief justice on November 17, 2011, and remained on that position until January 31, 2014.

He added that the caretaker chief minister was later appointed Supreme Court judge on November 17, 2014, and retired from that position on March 20, 2018. The petitioner said Dost Mohammad was appointed as caretaker chief minister, who assumed the office on June 6, 2018.