- Justice Babar Sattar terms recruitment process ‘mala fide in law,’ declares appointment as member and elevation to chairman void
- Says federal govt violated PTA rules, acted without reasoning, ruling senior-most PTA member to hold charge until new appointment
- PTA chief files intra-court appeal against removal from office
ISLAMABAD: The Islamabad High Court (IHC) on Tuesday declared the appointment of Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA) Chairman retired Major General Hafeezur Rehman as “illegal” and ordered his immediate removal from office.
The ruling came in a verdict issued by Justice Babar Sattar on a petition filed in 2023 by digital rights activist Usama Khilji, which challenged the creation of the PTA’s member (administration) post and subsequent appointments.
Justice Sattar held that the entire recruitment process “lacked integrity and suffered from mala fide in law,” noting that the selection committee had unlawfully recommended a panel of three names in violation of Rule 4(4) of the PTA Appointment Rules, which permitted only one.
He observed that the federal government had then “picked the candidate listed at the bottom of the panel without reasoning or objective basis,” in breach of Section 24A of the General Clauses Act, 1897, which requires decisions to be “just, fair and reasonable.”
The verdict further stated that Hafeezur Rehman’s subsequent elevation from member (administration) to PTA chairman was carried out “without any transparent process” and was “illegal, irrational, and unsustainable in the eyes of law.”
“The entire edifice of processes and decisions built on an illegal foundation must crumble,” Justice Sattar wrote, declaring that all steps taken on the basis of the flawed recruitment process, including Rehman’s appointments as member and chairman, had “no legal effect.”
He concluded that since the appointments “suffered from malice in law,” Rehman must “cease to hold such offices and shall immediately relinquish charge.” The court directed that the senior-most PTA member temporarily assume charge as chairman until the federal government makes a lawful appointment.
PTA chief challenges ruling
Following the judgment, PTA Chairman Hafeezur Rehman filed an intra-court appeal under the Intra-Court Appeal Ordinance, 1972.
In his plea, he contended that he was lawfully appointed as a member (administration) on May 24, 2023, and as PTA chairman the next day, and has since been performing his duties in accordance with law. The appeal argued that his appointment was legal and urged the court to set aside Justice Sattar’s decision.
