PESHAWAR, Aug 30: The All Pakistan Clerks Association, NWFP, on Friday decided to go on a three-day strike from Saturday, by stopping all work of judicial and election nature, against the transfer of eight of its members by the Peshawar High Court.

The decision was taken in an emergency meeting of Apca, presided over by its provincial president, Muhammad Aslam Khan, held here at the sessions courts against the transfer order issued by the registrar of the high court.

Apca has claimed that its office-holders and senior clerks in various courts at different stations, were being victimized by the high court, as a controversy was going on between the court and the association over the filling of certain posts in the high court.

The meeting decided that if the chief justice of high court failed to withdraw the controversial order during their three-day token strike, they would then decide on the future line of action in a general body meeting to be held on Sept 2.

The members of Apca transferred as per the order issued on Aug 29 included Fakhre Alam who was transferred from Charsadda to Mansehra, Muhammad Nawaz from Charsadda to Hangu, Abdul Majid from Peshawar to Upper Dir, Saeed Khan from Swat to Peshawar, Muhammad Ali from Lakki Marwat to Swabi, Laik Khan from Swabi to Lakki Marwat, Sareer Khan from Peshawar to Shangla and Salim Usman from Swat to Peshawar.

The speakers said that the chief justice had violated the order of the chief election commissioner under which transfers of government servants were embargoed until the conclusion of the election process. Moreover, they added that the high court had also violated the service rules of district cadre posts.

They regretted that on Aug 29 the transfer order was issued and on Aug 30 another order was issued forthwith relieving them of their present duties and were asked to report at the respective stations.

The speakers claimed that recently an advertisement had appeared in the press about the filling of certain posts in the high court and some had to be filled by promotions from amongst the employees.

The PCA, they claimed, had protested to the provincial government against the advertisement and requested it to fill those posts through promotions.

They claimed that the high court’s administration got annoyed with it and started victimizing office bearers of Apca.

Meanwhile, sources in the high court claimed that eight persons were transferred after receiving numerous complaints against them regarding their involvement in wrongdoings. The source claimed that office-holders of different bar associations had informed the chief justice about the activities of these Apca members following which they were transferred.

However, Apca office-holders rejected these allegations, saying that there were no charges of corruption against the transferred employees.