SC declares appointment in Balochistan Levies illegal

ISLAMABAD: The Supreme Court Wednesday held that recruitment of tehsildars and naib tehsildars in

the Balochsitan Levies were illegal. A three-member bench of the apex court headed by Chief Justice Umer Ata Bandial heard the appeal of the Balochistan government against the verdict of the Balochistan High Court (BHC) declaring these appointments as illegal.

The court upheld the decision of the Balochistan High Court, holding that the appointments of tehsildars and naib tehsildars in Balochistan Levies Force were illegally made. During hearing, the court raised some legal questions over appointments which the counsel for the provincial government could not answer satisfactorily.

Justice Syed Mansoor Ali Shah raised a question over the appointment of employees of the revenue department in Balochsitan Levies Force and asked which authority was supposed to make appointments in the Levies.

How could in-service officers of the revenue department be appointed in Levies Force?” Justice Mansoor Ali Shah wondered.

The Balochistan additional advocate-general, however, contended that the appointments of tehsildars in the Levies had been made in accordance with the law, adding that rules and regulations were taken into account in this regard. Justice Ayesha A Malik, another member of the bench, however, observed that the procedure was not followed in recruitment.

The respondent, who had challenged the appointments while pin-pointing violation of rules and regulations in the process of these appointment, told the court that the matter was challenged before the high court and the court after hearing the matter in detail had set aside it. Later, the court after hearing the parties dismissed the appeal of the Balochistan government.