LAHORE, Sep 10 (APP):A Lahore High Court (LHC) two-member bench on Tuesday restored Lieutenant General Muhammad Munir Afsar as the Chairman of the National Database and Registration Authority (NADRA).
The two-member bench suspended the single bench verdict that had declared the appointment of NADRA Chairman Lieutenant General Muhammad Munir Afsar illegal and issued notices to the parties, seeking their replies.
The bench, comprising Justice Ch
audhry Muhammad Iqbal and Justice Ahmad Nadeem Arshad, passed the orders while hearing an intra-court appeal filed by the federal government challenging the single bench verdict.
During the proceedings, Advocate Rashidi Nawaz appeared on behalf of the government and argued tha
t the single bench’s verdict, which had declared Afsar’s appointment illegal based on a petition filed by Ashba Kamran, was agains
t the facts. He submitted tha
t the petitioner had challenged the appointment notification issued by the interim government, but she had never challenged the new amended rule.
He contended tha
t the federal government had the authority to carry ou
t the rule-making process under Section 44 of th
e NADRA Ordinance, 2000, which included the power to amend the rules. He further argued tha
t the chairman’s appointment was made in accordance with Rule 7A of th
e NADRA (Appointment and Emoluments of Chairman and Members) Rules, 2020, and that when discretion is exercised, there is no obligation to issue a public advertisement or conduct a competitive recruitment process. He urged the bench to overturn the single bench’s verdict and reinstate th
e NADRA chairman’s appointment.
At this, the bench suspended the single bench’s verdict and issued notices to the parties, seeking their replies.
A single bench comprising Justice Asim Hafeez had declared the appointment of NADRA’s chairman unlawful on September 6.
