04 November 2004	Thursday	20 Ramazan 1425

LAHORE, Nov 3: The Punjab government is likely to amend the Punjab Removal from Service (Special Powers) Ordinance, 2000, to remove operational faults in it.

A summary in this regard had been sent to the chief minister for approval, official sources told Dawn here on Wednesday.

According to them, the summary had been prepared by the Regulation Wing of the Service and General Administration Department.

Besides basic amendments to remove practical difficulties faced for the implementation of the law, the authorities concerned had also proposed a change in its nomenclature because "it makes it look like a draconian law enacted only to sack people," they said.

When asked about the difficulties faced by the government in the implementation of the law, they said one of them was about the right to appeal against decisions of the competent authority in the Punjab Service Tribunal.

The authorities had revisited the law also while keeping in view the grounds on which it had been challenged in courts from time to time. "We have made an attempt to now make it a foolproof legislation," they said.

The ordinance was promulgated in 2000 by the then Punjab Governor Lt-Gen Muhammad Safdar (retired).