Advisers, special assistants’ appointment lawful, govt tells PHC

PESHAWAR: The Khyber Pakhtunkhwa government in its reply submitted to the Peshawar High Court (PHC) on Thursday stated that the appointment of advisers and special assistants to the chief minister were made in accordance with the law and they are performing duties as assigned to them by the chief minister from time to time.

A four-page joint reply was submitted by the respondents including Governor, Chief Minister, Chief Secretary and Secretary Establishment of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa through Advocate General Abdul Latif Yousafzai.

The provincial government claimed in the reply that the advisors and special assistants were not performing the functions of provincial ministers and the petition is based on malafide intentions with ulterior motives for political gains.

“The relief prayed in various paras of the petition and the interim relief are illegal as everything has been prayed on the touchstone of Ordinance, 1989 which has been repealed by section 4 of Act, 1989,” one of the respondents explained, saying that the petition is liable to be dismissed with special cost as the court has been deceived and misstatements were made to obtain the interim relief of suspending the advisors and special assistants to the chief minister.

A division bench comprising Justice Ikramullah Khan and Justice Musarrat Hilali, on June 13, had suspended the notifications issued on September 13, 2018, and January 22, 2019, through which the said five appointments had been made.

Through the first notification, the KP governor on the advice of the chief minister appointed Ziaullah Bangash as adviser to the CM on elementary and secondary education, Hamayatullah Khan as adviser on energy and power, Abdul Karim Khan as special assistant on industries and commerce and Kamran Khan Bangash as special assistant on science and technology and information technology.

Through another notification on January 22, Ajmal Wazir was appointed adviser with the task of supervision and coordination of merged districts’ affairs and spokesperson for the provincial government.

The petition had been filed by ANP MPA Khushdil Khan, who is also a former deputy speaker and a senior lawyer, who requested the court to strike down the KP Advisers and Special Assistants to the Chief Minister (Appointment) Ordinance, 1989, and Rule 33A of the Rules of Business, 1985, being inconsistent with the provisions of the Constitution.

He also requested the court to declare the appointments of the five advisers and special assistants under the provisions of the Ordinance as illegal and unconstitutional.

He contended that the advisers and special assistants had been delegated executive authority and power, which they could not exercise under Article 129 as the same was only vested in the chief minister and provincial ministers.

The government stated that the petition is not maintainable as the petitioner has challenged the Ordinance IV of 1989 known as North-West Frontier Province Advisors and Special Assistants to the Chief Minister (Appointment) Ordinance, 1989, which has already been repealed by section 4 of the Act No VI of 1989 known as Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Advisors and Special Assistants to the Chief Minister (Appointment) Act, 1989.

Furthermore, it was stated that the petitioner has no locus standi to file the petition and similar writ petition had also dismissed in 2013 and the petition is thus barred under Order 2 Rule 3 and Order 23 Rule 1 and 2.