Recovery of salary, perks from secretary

PESHAWAR: The Peshawar High Court (PHC) on Thursday issued a notice to Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Assembly Speaker and Accountant General Khyber Pakhtunkhwa directing to submit a reply in a writ petition seeking recovery of salary and perks and privilege from the KP Assembly secretary.

A division bench comprising Justice Musarrat Hilali and Justice Ishtiaq Ibrahim issued the notice to the Speaker KP Assembly, Mushtaq Ahmad Ghani and Accountant General KP and fixed March 21 for next hearing into the case.

The bench passed the direction in a writ petition filed by Abdul Khaliq through his lawyer Ali Azeem Afridi.

The lawyer argued that the seniority of Nasrullah Khan as KP Assembly Secretary was challenged by Additional Secretary Provincial Assembly Ghulam Sarwar in the Service Tribunal Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.

He said that the Service Tribunal then declared appointment and promotion of Nasrullah on September 14, 2017, as KP Assembly secretary illegal and against the law.However, he said, in violation of the court verdict, Nasrullah remained secretary of the KP Assembly and the Supreme Court also dismissed his appeal against the tribunal decision and the reasons for remaining in the seat was best known to the KP Assembly speaker.

Having no other option, he pointed out that Nasrullah was then reverted to the post of additional secretary KP Assembly on September 7, 2018.

However, he said, with the active support and connivance of respondent KP Assembly speaker, Nasrullah even after demotion was getting salary and perks/privileges of the office of the secretary of the Provincial Assembly Khyber Pakhtunkhwa against the law.

After less than a month of demotion, he said, Nasrullah was notified on September 25, 2018, as Secretary KP Assembly, regardless of the fact that his promotion had already been brought under question by one of the Senior Additional Secretary Provincial Assembly Khyber Pakhtunkhwa before the Service Tribunal Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.

He pointed out that the Service Tribunal again declared the promotion of Nasrullah as secretary illegal.