SHC suspends law dept’s notification relinquishing services of additional AGs

The Sindh High Court on Thursday suspended a notification of law department that relinquished the services of additional advocates general (AAGs) and assistant advocates general Sindh.

The interim order came during a hearing of a petition of Barrister Ghulam Mustafa Mahesar and Ghulam Abbas Sangi challenging the law department’s October 24 notification which denotified them as AAGs.

The petitioners’ counsel, Abid S Zuberi, submitted that AAG Mahesar was appointed for a minimum period of three years from January 18, 2017, to January 18, 2020, and AAG Sangi was appointed for a period of three years from August 25, 2017, to August 25, 2020.

He submitted that the petitioners had made numerous contributions to the legal fraternity, one of such was to be appointed as legal counsel for the government of Sindh in the court. He further stated that both petitioners during such time diligently performed their duties by upholding the prestige of the office to which they were assigned and no complaint or allegation of any questionable act or conduct which could be seen to be incompatible with duties of such a law officer or be considered as tantamount to professional negligence or misconduct were ever made or filed in/or before the office of neither the advocate general of Sindh nor the Sindh Bar Council.

He submitted that the impugned notification was issued in violation of the Sindh government’s rules of business inasmuch as it was the authority of the governor, who could have issued such a notification ending the services of the petitioners.

The counsel maintained that the subject issue was included in the list requiring an order of the governor on the advice of the chief minister, and the notification was devoid of any such exercise.

Regarding AAG Sangi’s removal from the post, he submitted that rules of business and services were violated while issuing the impugned notification. He submitted that the impugned notification had been issued without following the requisite procedure prescribed under the rules of business, 1986, whereby approval/ order of the Governor was required.

Besides, he stated that the notification had been issued without issuing the mandatory three-month notice as required under the law and without having regard to the minimum tenure. He said that impugned notification was a non-speaking and discriminatory order as no reasons had been prescribed for issuing it.

The counsel submitted in the petition that additional advocate general Mustafa Mahesar was a highly respected and qualified member of the legal fraternity who was called to the Bar of England & Wales and is also a member of the society of Lincoln’s Inn in 2010. He submitted that Mahesar has completed a double Masters in criminal litigation and international commercial law from the City University of London and also a solicitor for the Supreme Court of England & Wales.

The court was requested to declare the notification was in violation of principles of natural justice and to set aside it.

A division bench headed by Justice Mohammad Shafi Siddiqui, after the preliminary hearing of the petition, issued notices to the law department, the governor and the AG for November 12 and in the meantime suspended the operation of the impugned notification.