ISLAMABAD: The Supreme Court expressed concern over no recruitment of minorities by the federal and the provincial governments in accordance with five per cent quota.
A three-member bench, headed by Chief Justice Gulzar Ahmed, on Tuesday, heard the suo-moto regarding the Rahim Yar Khan temple attack.
Chairman one-member Commission on Minorities Rights Dr Shoaib Suddle informed the bench that there are 30,000 minorities vacancies in the federal and the provincial governments as per five per cent quota.
The Supreme Court, in January 2019 had constituted a one-member commission under the leadership of Dr Suddle for the enforcement of its orders.
Dr Suddle said 5pc quota was allocated for minorities in the government sector jobs, adding; however, the job quota for minorities does not specify Hindus, Christians, Sikhs or others.
He said there were currently 30,000 vacancies for minorities across the country but the federal, Punjab, Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa, Sindh, and Balochistan governments were not recruiting minorities according to the quota.
The apex bench directed the federal government and the provincial chief secretaries to cooperate with the Suddle-led commission and the relevant authorities should take prompt action on minority employment issues and submit a report in one-month period.
The top court also acknowledged that the Rahim Yar Khan Temple had been rebuilt following the attack.
On August 5, dozens of people reportedly vandalised a Hindu temple in the town of Bhong and blocked the Sukkur-Multan Motorway after an eight-year-old Hindu boy, who allegedly urinated in a local seminary, was granted bail by a local court.
"Raees Munir Ahmed has donated 10 kanals of land to Punjab Police for setting up a police station in Bhong," the SC remarked.
"Raees Munir is ready to give another 25 acres of land as a gift for the construction of Sadiqabad Interchange on Multan-Sukkur Motorway."
The apex bench stated that the chairman of the National Highways Authority (NHA) and the planning secretary should appear in person at the next hearing and inform the court about the construction of the Sadiqabad Interchange.
The CJP also asked the NHA chairman, if he had seen the condition of motorways and highways.
"I have been told that, on paper, the Chitral-Gilgit Highway had been constructed three times. In Sindh, the motorway is just in name. There are no restrooms on the Multan-Sukkur Motorway," the CJP said.
On this, the NHA chairman said "steps are being taken".
The CJP Ahmed asked what steps were being taken, and instructed the NHA official to have answers ready for the next hearing.
Copyright Business Recorder, 2021
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