The government of Sindh Monday challenged Sindh High Court verdict which ruled that provincial government cannot remove incumbent Inspector General of Police Allah Dino Khawaja from the slot without any justification. Announcing its short order in response to pleas of civil society organisations including SHEHRI and others in the matter, a two-member bench of Justices Munib Akhtar and Omar Sial turned down Sindh government's notification for removal of Khawaja from the slot of inspector general of police.
While giving verdict in favour of the civil society petitions which sought the High Court's directives against removal of Khawaja and for reforms in the police department, the Division Bench ruled that provincial government had no authority to remove an inspector general of police without any ground for removal.
Seeking dismissal of Sindh High Court' Division Bench, provincial government's counsel Farooq H Naek raised a number of questions of law for the apex court to decide in the matter.
Naek submitted that the division bench while passing judgment in the case, completely traveled beyond the pleadings and prayers of the petitions before it and interpreted Section 3, 4 and 12 of Police Act, 1861 without putting advocate general on notice in terms of Order 27-A CPC.
He said the learned division bench failed to appreciate that responsibility to maintain law and order exclusively rested upon the provincial government, and responsibility could not be fulfilled unless the executive authority over police lied in the hands of provincial government.
"That impugned judgment has completely eroded the executive authority of provincial government in respect of administration of police force and the same has been completely rested upon a federal officer working in provincial government on deputation basis," the provincial government submitted.
Urging the court to grant leave to appeal in the matter, Naek submitted that the provincial government was facing severe hardship in performing its constitutional obligation of maintaining law and order unless the petition in hand is allowed, saying otherwise the public interest shall be seriously prejudiced and authority and autonomy of the provincial government shall be undermined.