KARACHI, July 20: The Supreme Court registry at Karachi granted on Saturday leave to appeal against a Sindh High Court decision on the ground that the judgment was signed by two judges but the petition was heard by the chief justice of the SHC only.

A two-member bench of the Supreme Court, consisting of Justice Syed Deedar Husain Shah and Justice Hamid Ali Mirza, was hearing appeal against a judgment of the SHC passed on Jan 14, which dismissed the plea of a former senior observer in the Pakistan Meteorological Service, Karachi, Feroz Akber, regarding his termination from service and cancellation of accommodation.

The Supreme Court order said: “Submission of the petitioner are that he filed a constitutional petition, granted interim stay which was confirmed later. The petition was heard on Jan 14 by the Chief Justice of the SHC sitting single which was dismissed the same day by a short order pronounced orally, but the reasons given on Feb 16 showed that the verdict was signed by the Chief Justice of the SHC, Justice Saiyed Saeed Ashhad, and Justice Mushir Alam.

“Perusal of the cause list of Jan 14 showed that Miscellaneous Application No 5888 of 2001 in constitutional petition No 1062 of 1994 was fixed before the Chief Justice of the SHC, whereas the impugned judgment reflected that the verdict was heard by a division bench and dismissed,” the Supreme Court observed.

When the matter came up for hearing on March 28 before a full bench of the Supreme Court, the report was ordered to be called from the registrar of the SHC to know whether the petition was heard by a division bench as reflected in the judgment.

“In view of the above material and circumstances the petitioner has made out prima facie a case for grant of leave to appeal to consider whether he was heard on Jan 14 by the Chief Justice of the SHC only or by a division bench of the same court on the next day, and whether this appeal with regard to termination of his service pending before the apex court was considered while dismissing his petition. What would have been the effect if the answer to the above pleas would have been in the affirmative or in the negative on the impugned judgment,” the Supreme Court observed.

The Supreme Court ordered that so far orders on the question of showcause notice issued to the registrar of the SHC for disobedience of the SC orders were disposed of by separate orders.

The facts of the case are that the petitioner filed a constitutional petition with the SHC stating his services were illegally terminated on May 3, 1995 when he was working as senior observer at Karachi under the Director- General of the Pakistan Meteorological Service.

The petitioner preferred departmental appeal to his boss as well as the ministry of defence, Rawalpindi, but no response was received. Meanwhile, the estate officer cancelled his allotment of government accommodation in Karachi.

Being aggrieved, Feroz Akber filed a petition with the SHC in which he made the Government of Pakistan, through the Secretary Aviation Wing, Rawalpindi, the respondent. — PPI