LHC directs federal, Punjab govts to submit reply in IG appointment case by Sep 14
LHC Chief Justice Qasim Khan presided over the proceedings.
LAHORE (Dunya News) – The Lahore High Court (LHC) Thursday directed the federal and the Punjab governments to submit reply by September 14 in a case pertaining to the appointments of new Punjab Inspector General (IG) Inam Ghani and Lahore Capital City Police Officer (CCPO) Umar Shaikh.
LHC Chief Justice Qasim Khan presided over the proceedings and asked Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) leader Malik Ahmad Khan – who had moved the court – that was he a lawyer, to which the PML-N leader replied in affirmative.
Justice Qasim Khan – while addressing the complainant – said, “Former Punjab IG Shoaib Dastgir said in court that it was not possible to implement every law, and you came to the LHC to save such an officer.” The counsel replied that he had not lodged the petition to save Shoaib Dastgir, but to ensure enforcement of the law.
The Punjab government’s lawyer raised objection against the application and argued that the plaintiff was not an affected party. The court said in its remarks that how the applicant was not an affected party, adding that the Punjab advocate general should have conducted a meeting himself over the matter.
Let it be known that PML-N leader Malik Ahmad Khan had Wednesday moved the LHC and maintained in his petition that the government had changed the Punjab IG for political purposes. The step was also against the Police Ordinance 2002 which determined the tenure of the Punjab IG for three years, the application said.
It had been mentioned in the petition that the government changed five IGs in Punjab in just two years. The LHC had been requested to nullify the transfer of former Punjab IG Shoaib Dastgir and the appointment of Umar Sheikh as the new Lahore CCPO.
The federal and the provincial governments, newly appointed Punjab IG Inam Ghani, Shoaib Dastgir, Umar Sheikh and former Lahore CCPO had been made parties in the case.
