June 16, 2003	Monday	Rabi-us-Sani 15, 1424

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ISLAMABAD, June 15: The Lahore High Court has been approached for a declaration that Justice Mansoor Ahmad, who was nominated for the International Tribunal for Rwanda working under the UN, has ceased to be a judge of the high court.

In a writ petition, filed in the LHC, Rawalpindi bench, Tallat Abbas Advocate stated that Justice Mansoor Ahmad, a former federal law secretary, after being named as Pakistan’s nominee for the ICTR, had ceased to be a judge in the light of Article 207-1 as he accepted a post of higher remuneration.

Justice Mansoor Ahmad came back from the ICTR within a week, and is now trying to get the post of federal law secretary on the basis of a notification issued prior to his departure for ICTR, which stated that during his stay at the ICTR, he would be deemed to be on deputation.

The petitioner, through his counsel Advocate Chaudhry Naseer Ahmad, contended that no notification could be issued which was contrary to the constitutional provisions.

He stated that a judge who was nominated and elected by the UN General Assembly, and who also left the country to take up the job, had ceased to be a judge of the LHC.

He prayed the court to issue a writ of quo warranto, directing the respondent to show under what authority he claimed to be holder of the office of the judge.

He said the notification issued under Article 205 be declared to be a nullity in the eyes of the law, and liable to be set aside on the grounds that he had ceased to hold the office of a judge.

The petitioner stated that there was no legal or financial justification for permitting the facility of a family car with driver, and utility bills of family residence and police guards at the family residence when the respondent No 2 would have been at ICTR.

The petitioner held that it appeared that Justice Mansoor asked the respective authority at ITCR for a transfer of appointment on the appellate side of the said tribunal which is housed in The Hague.

“The request of the respondent No 2 (Justice Mansoor) was not accepted on the ground that his nomination and election was for appointment on the original side of the tribunal,” he stated.

Had Justice Mansoor Ahmad worked at the ICTR, he would been drawing a salary of $120,000 per year, and after four years, he would have continued getting $50,000 per year for the rest of his life, he pointed out.