ISLAMABAD:
The Islamabad High Court (IHC) on Monday reinstated Chaudhry Rashid Ahmed as the chairman of Pakistan Electronic Media Regulatory Authority (Pemra).
Justice Noorul Haq Qureshi issued the order, reinstating the sacked chairman, wherein it was stated that Ahmed’s case should have been placed before the federal commission which was constituted to select heads of public sector organisations.
Ahmed had previously been appointed chairman of the government’s media watchdog on January 2013, by former president Asif Ali Zardari. Subsequently, President Mamnoon Hussain dismissed Ahmed in April 2014.
The court stated that due process had not been followed while removing the official, adding that neither sufficient time nor documentation had been provided to Ahmed to submit a reply.
This is the second time the IHC has issued an order to reinstate the sacked Pemra chief. In December 2013, one day after his unceremonious sacking by the president, the Pemra chairman was reinstated by the IHC.
According to a notification of the president’s office, the appointment of Ahmed was neither open nor transparent because while he was the information secretary and a serving government employee, Ahmed had initiated a summary proposing himself as a candidate for the Pemra chairman post, which is an appointment without merit, according to the notification.
Ahmed challenged his termination through counsel, Waseem Sajjad, who had argued that his client’s sacking was illegal and against the Pemra Act, 2007. His counsel also argued that his client was neither given a show-cause notice nor had any inquiry been conducted before his dismissal.
It was also argued that Ahmed was appointed following the directives of the Supreme Court as it had asked the government to fill the post as per Section 6 of the Pemra Act.
The apex court had ruled for a replacement when it barred the then acting Pemra chairman, Dr Abdul Jabbar, from holding office.
Ahmed’s counsel maintained that among seven names shortlisted for the chairman’s post, three were finalised by the information ministry and the summary was sent to the prime minister in which Ahmed’s name was already mentioned.
The head of Pemra denied that he himself had initiated the summary.
Published in The Express Tribune, May 26th, 2015.
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