KARACHI, May 13: A division bench of the Sindh High Court restrained the chairman of the Implementation Tribunal for Newspaper Employees on Tuesday from implementing the Seventh Wage Award for newspaper workers.

The bench consisted of Justice Mohammad Roshan Essani and Justice Khilji Arif Hussain. It passed the interim order on an application moved by Pakistan Herald Publications (PHPL) in its petition against the tribunal’s chairman, Javed Nawaz Gandapur, the federal labour ministry, the Pakistan Herald Workers Union and five PHPL employees, who are complainants against the petitioner before the tribunal. It will remain effective till the next hearing, the date for which will be fixed by the SHC office.

Observing that the award was among the matters sub judice before the Supreme Court, the bench said “the peculiar facts and circumstances of the case” warranted a restraint order. It took note of the absence of the respondent chairman and his comments despite notice. The office was directed to repeat notices to the respondents.

Representing the respondent union, Advocate Faiz Ghangro said he had not been supplied a copy of the application for interim order. The bench observed that a copy was not difficult to obtain and asked the petitioners’ counsels, Abdul Hafeez Pirzada and Muneer A. Malik, to immediately furnish one.

Mr Pirzada submitted that the union did not figure in the matter as the petitioner was seeking a restraint order against the chairman. Mr Ghangro submitted that the union members would ultimately be affected by any order but the submission was rejected.

The bench noted the contention of Mr Pirzada that though the Supreme Court was seized of the matter, the chairman was bent upon implementing the award “by hook or by crook.” The chairman was biased against the petitioner as was particularly evident from a handwritten note on the comments submitted to the tribunal by PHWU Secretary Shafiuddin Ashraf in July 2002, it said. The chairman “forewarned” the federal labour minister that he would have to resort to legal coercive methods to have the Sixth Wage Award implemented, he said. Out of respect for the office (Peshawar High Court judge) earlier held by Mr Gandapur, Mr Pirzada submitted, he wrote him a “nice” letter requesting him to withdraw from any proceedings against the petitioner but he persisted with hearing of complaints.

The petition cites a number of orders passed by the tribunal in respect of the implementation of the Sixth Wage Award as well as a press statement made by him in July 2002 about the Seventh Award as proof of his bias and alleges that “his acts and actions are mala fide in law.” It seeks a permanent injunction against the chairman to bar him from hearing cases against the petitioner.