LAHORE:The Lahore High Court on Wednesday directed the Punjab Public Service Commission (PPSC) to entertain an application of a transgender person for the examination being held to appoint Urdu lecturers in accordance with eligibility criteria.
Justice Faisal Zaman Khan passed the order on a petition of Fayazullah, a transgender person, against the rejection of his application for the examination and non-allocation of job quota for the transgender community.
Earlier, responding to the court’s query, a counsel of the PPSC said the commission had no objection in allowing the petitioner to sit in the examination if the Higher Education Department (HED) gave an approval in this regard.
Asked about the view of the department, a section officer told the court that the HED had no objection to allow the petitioner to appear in the examination after meeting the eligibility criteria. He said the department decided to entertain the application of the petitioner as a female candidate. At this, Justice Khan disposed of the petition as the grievance of the petitioner stood addressed. The judge observed that any other member of the transgender community could also apply, if meets the basic criteria, for the posts announced by the PPSC. In this case, the judge had already stayed the process for the recruitment of lecturers by the commission. The petitioner through a counsel said that the government policy was discriminatory in nature and contrary to the fundamental rights of the citizens.
He further argued that the impugned policy was also in violation of Transgender Protection Act 2018. The counsel asked the court to set aside the discriminatory policy of the government and direct the PPSC to allocate job quota for the transgender community.
remanded: An accountability court on Wednesday granted 10-day physical remand of one Mian Rafaqat Ali, former president of Green View Cooperative Housing Society, an accused of cheating public at large, in NAB custody.
Rafaqat Ali is accused of misappropriating the society funds for his personal gains and through this the accused managed to acquire hefty assets in his own and other family members’ names. NAB received more than 70 complaints against the management of Green View Cooperative Housing Society and Lahore Motorway City. The accused misappropriated the funds and land of Green View Cooperative Housing Society. However, during inquiry proceedings, accused Mian Rafaqat Ali failed to provide and justify sources of his income along with complete details of his and other members’ assets.