MUZAFFARABAD: A recent direction of Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK) Prime Minister Chaudhry Abdul Majeed regarding the appointment of one of his aides as his special assistant has been returned by the Services and General Administration Department (S&GAD) for review.

Sources told Dawn here on Monday that a few days ago the AJK chief secretary’s office received a summary from the prime minister , whereby he had granted approval to the appointment of Murtaza Durrani as his special assistant with the status of a minister.

The summary, which stated that Mr Durrani would receive salary and other perks against any vacant ministry, was forwarded by the chief secretary’s office to the S&GAD for “examination in the light of relevant law,” the sources added.

The S&GAD, it may be mentioned here, is responsible for issuance of notifications of appointments, postings, transfers, etc., of all government servants and political appointees.

The AJK’s Interim Constitution Act, 1974, has no mention of advisers with the president or the prime minister, except for a Plebiscite Adviser.

However, the position was created by inserting section 6-A in the Rules of Business, 1985 and ever since successive governments have been appointing their favourites as advisers/special assistants to the president and prime minister.

However, in June last year, two leaders of opposition Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) filed a writ petition in the AJK High Court against what they said “unlawful and unwarranted” appointments of advisers in AJK with ministerial status.

In order to counter the move and give ‘legal cover’ to advisers, the present government convened a one day session of the AJK Legislative Assembly session on June 18, this year, and enacted with majority a bill, namely the AJK Advisors (Appointment, Salaries, Allowance and Privileges) Act, 2014.

Under the law, the president can appoint two advisers and the prime minister four , including a senior adviser and a special assistant, to perform such functions as may be assigned to them by their respective bosses.

Referring to the very law, the S&GAD had maintained that since three advisers and a special assistant to the prime minister already stood appointed, a fifth one could not be appointed, the sources said, adding, the S&GAD had instead suggested to the chief secretary’s office to ask the prime minister to review his direction.

“Today, the prime minister’s secretariat has received the S&GAD opinion via chief secretary’s office,” the sources said.

It may be mentioned here that the post of special assistant to the prime minister is held by retired colonel Zameer Khan since 2011 while Chaudhry Mohammad Riaz, Raja Mubashir Ejaz and Chaudhry Ilyas were appointed as advisers in December last year.

Mr Riaz is a non-Kashmiri but calls the shots in AJK on behalf of Ms Faryal Talpur MNA. The position of ‘senior adviser’ was created for him in the prevalent law on advisers.

Contrarily, Mr Durrani had served with Mr Majeed against a discretionary BPS-20 post of media adviser for over two years. He had to quit the position last year allegedly due to opposition by some cabinet members.

Published in Dawn, October 28th, 2014