Justice Hashim Kakar of the Supreme Court (SC) on Tuesday observed that even if the prime minister issues illegal orders, civil servants are not bound to obey them.
A three-member bench of the Supreme Court, headed by Justice Hashim Kakar, heard a case relating to illegal recruitments in the Oil and Gas Development Company Limited (OGDCL) and directed lawyers to prepare arguments on the review petition filed by former federal minister Anwar Saifullah.
During the hearing, counsel for the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) told the court that former minister Anwar Saifullah had asked the chairman to issue appointment letters.
The NAB lawyer said the minister’s principal staff officer had written that there was parliamentary pressure for jobs, adding that when civil servants refuse to comply with such orders, they are subjected to severe consequences.
At this, Justice Salahuddin Panhwar remarked that the public primarily demands jobs from ministers.
Justice Hashim Kakar responded that there is a proper procedure for appointments, which includes advertising vacancies, adding that the system is not a monarchy where orders are simply issued.
He reiterated that even if the prime minister gives illegal directions, civil servants are not obligated to follow them.
The NAB lawyer further stated that overstaffing had been carried out in OGDCL.
In response, Justice Hashim Kakar observed that almost every government institution suffers from overstaffing and asked that Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) be compared with international airlines.
Arguing further, the NAB counsel said that due to overstaffing in PIA, the government had been forced to move towards privatisation.
Justice Ishtiaq Ibrahim then observed that at the time when these recruitments were made, the Accountability Commission law was not in place.
Justice Hashim Kakar added that the concerned federal minister had already served his sentence and questioned whether it was not sufficient that the minister had completed his punishment.
The NAB lawyer requested the court to dismiss the review petition and uphold the earlier decision.
Reporter: Amanat Gishkori