ISLAMABAD: The federation assured the apex court to fill posts of the Pakistan Administrative Service (PAS) and the Police Service in Pakistan (PSP) in Sindh under Rule 7(1) of the Civil Service of Pakistan (Composition and Cadre) Rules, 1954.
A three-judge bench, headed by Chief Justice Umar Ata Bandial, on Monday, heard the Sindh government application, filed under Article 184(3) of Constitution, regarding posting/ transfer of PAS and PSP officers from the Sindh province.
Advocate General Sindh Salman Talibuddin explained that the posts sharing agreement between the federation and the provinces is laid down under Rule 7(1) Civil Service of Pakistan (Composition and Cadre) Rules, 1954, which creates legal rights in Sindh for the federal government quota to provide the PAS officers of different grades from 17 to 21 as described in the said rules.
He said according to Rule 7(1) of the Civil Service of Pakistan (Composition and Cadre) Rules, 1954 the ratio of All-Pakistan service officers in Sindh is BS-17 25%, BS-18 40%, BS-19 50%, BS-20 60% and BS-21 65%. “On the basis of the cadre strength the number of PAS officers in Sindh is BS-17 98 officers, BS-18 85 officers, BS-19 59 officers, BS-20 67 officers and BS-21 16 officers.
Attorney General Khalid Jawed Khan submitted that on account of shortage of officers the prescribed ratio of sanctioned posts indicated by Sindh cannot be met fully. He said the grievance raised by Sindh is related to Rotation Policy of PAS/ PSP officers, which is updated on 05-08-2020, under the Civil Servants Act, 1973, wherein, the male officers who have served more than five years have to be pulled out of the province.
The attorney general said that the officers’ posting is not done with malafide intentions and any extraneous reasons. He submitted that the federation would do its best to recruit more officers of BS-17 this year, while posting of BS-18 and above will take some time. He informed that in Sindh, the BS-17 officers are 98, while in Punjab they are 65, and in Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa just 63.
The AG Sindh explained that the rotation policy is not an issue, but the shortage of officers can be shared with the province under Rule 15(1) of the Rules, 1954. He said that they don’t say the officers are not transferred, but the federal government should tell which officers will be posted in Sindh.
The bench noted that the question as to what sort of consultation required under Rule 15 for the enforcement of the rights of the province can override Rule 7(1) is the point between the Sindh and the federation.
Justice Mansoor questioned how the dispute between the federation and the Sindh province regarding posting/ transfer of BS-17 to BS-21 officers lies under Article 184(3) of Constitution. He said the apex court resolves legal issues, but the present one relates to the capacity issue. He; however, noted that the Sindh’s claim is that the federal government is not implementing Rule 7(1).
The attorney general said the provincial government can also fill the posts in all cadres through Provincial Management Service (PMS). The provinces have their own management services.
The attorney general said that the real issue is rotation policy, and many PAS officers are working in Sindh for the last 20 to 25 years, and they don’t like to be transferred out of the province. He said the officers are posted in relation to the transfer.
Justice Ayesha Malik questioned how the rotation policy is given effect when the officers have to be changed after five years, adding in Sindh, the officers are being changed after 23 years.
Justice Mansoor Ali Shah noted that the rotation policy is altogether different from allocation.
Justice Bandial said that the rotation policy cannot override the Rule 7(1) and the adjustment has to be made in accordance with the provisions of the constitution. It can’t be unilateral. He said the question is whether the rotation policy can be imposed in derogation of Rule 15 of the Rules 1954.
The case was adjourned until March 1.
It may be noted that Chief Minister Murad Ali Shah on 23rd November, 2021 wrote a letter to Prime Minister Imran Khan, wherein he stated that the federal government has not posted even 50 percent of the BS-17 to BS-21 share in Sindh in the last several years. “As we are discussing BS-20 officers, out of 67 seats, services of only 20 All Pakistan service officers are presently available to Sindh. Thus, there is a massive shortfall of 47 PAS officers in Sindh. In case of PSP officers (BS-20), only 22 are posted against a total strength of 26, i.e., a shortfall of four PSO officers (BS-20),” said the letter.
He further wrote that the Sindh government has approached the federal government several times with the request to post the required number of officers. In February 2021, the Sindh government wrote to the Establishment Division to provide the requisite number of officers against the posts reserved for them.
Copyright Business Recorder, 2022
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