July 4, 2003	Friday	Jumadi-ul-Awwal 3,1424

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RAWALPINDI, July 3: The Lahore High Court, Rawalpindi bench, has declared all decisions and orders passed by the Cantonment’s mini-board since its inception in 1999 null and void.

In a detailed judgment released on Thursday, Justice Maulvi Anwarul Haq has asked the cantonment authorities to get the decisions approved by the full board by July 30.

“The writ petition accordingly is allowed. The notification varying the board and consequently extending the term thereof are declared to be without lawful authority and accordingly quashed and set aside.

Consequently all the decisions taken or orders made by the members of the Varied Board, except to the extent of payment of salary to the staff of the Cantonment Board and utility bills shall stand void unless ratified by the Cantonment Board consisting of the elected as well as unelected members (as constituted under section 13-A of the said Act by July 30, 2003),” the judgment said.

In his judgment, Justice Haq, under sub-section (5) of the section 14 of the Cantonment Act, has held that the full board stands restored the day the term of the varied board expires.

The petition against the mini-board was filed by Haji Ijaz, a member of the full board.

“When the term of office of a board constituted under this section has expired or ceased, the board shall be replaced by the former board which, but for the declaration under sub-section (1) would have continued to hold office, or, if the term of office of such a former board has expired.”

The judge cited a decision of the Supreme Court in the case of Federation of Pakistan versus Ghulam Habib Rana in 1997, which declared the constitution of a mini-board as illegal and restored the full board.

According to Cantonment Act 1924, the elected board can be suspended only in two cases: when there is emergency or military operation or when such situation has developed when the cantonment board has problems in running the affairs of the board. None of these reasons existed at the time when the board was varied.