KARACHI: High Court admits two more petitions: Ban on teachers associations
By Shujaat Ali Khan
KARACHI, Sept 14: The Sindh High Court admitted two more petitions challenging the provincial government’s ban on teachers’ associations for hearing on Sept 26 along with the petition moved by the Sindh Professors and Lecturers Association.The SPLA petition came up before a division bench, comprising Chief Justice Sabihuddin Ahmed and Justice Yasmin Abbasy, and Advocate-General Anwar Mansoor Khan sought time for filing comments after consulting the education department.
Advocate Akhtar Hussain, the SPLA counsel, pointed out that two more petitions challenging the notification and action taken against their office-bearers had, meanwhile, been filed.
The bench admitted the petitions and ordered that their copies should also be furnished to the AG for hearing on 8.30am on Sept 26.The new petitions had been moved by the Sindh Schoolteachers Association and individual office-bearers and members of various associations for being asked to show cause or forced to proceed on leave for taking part in their organizations’ activities.
Preadmission notices had already been issued for Sept 19 in a petition by a teacher sent on forced leave on Aug 23 and issued a notice on Aug 28 for showing cause why action should not be taken against him under the Removal from Service (Special Powers) Ordinance, 2001, for participating in an association’s meeting.
His counsel, Rasheed A. Razvi, submitted that the petitioner had been punished before being asked to show cause, which was unlawful.
All the petitions assail the notification for banning teachers associations in violation of the constitutional provisions guaranteeing the freedom of association and expression and other fundamental human rights.
Meanwhile, power broke down as the bench took up three petitions against the Karachi Electricity Supply Corporation at high noon and the chief justice remarked that ‘this shows the importance of the matter’ before the bench. KESC counsel Abdul Hafeez Pirzada agreed but insisted that the new management of the corporation had nothing to do with it. The management inherited a faulty infrastructure. The counsel has already raised preliminary objections to the maintainability of the petitions.
Appearing for the Water and Power Development Authority, Lahore-based lawyer Majid Khan sought time for filing comments and the bench adjourned the hearing to Oct 16. Deputy Attorney-General Akhtar Ali Mahmud appeared for the federal government and Advocate Faez Isa Qazi for Siemens. The privatization commission has also joined in the proceedings as the petitioners have alleged that power breakdowns have increased after the sale of KESC to a private company.
Petitioner Maulvi Iqbal Haider has alleged through Advocate Sohail Hameed that the Council of Common Interests meeting which is said to have approved the KESC privatization was not representative of all the provinces as required by Article 153 of the Constitution.
The petitioner wants the corporation to be reverted to the public sector as it was a public utility providing a basic need and could not properly function without accountability. Advocate Nadeem Ahmed has demanded in his petition that at least the KESC should be obliged to give advance notice of shutdowns and load shedding.
