The Sindh High Court (SHC) on Tuesday extended its stay on the removal of Inspector General of Police (IGP) A.D. Khawaja from his post and ordered the IGP to continue his duties till the court reaches a decision in the matter, DawnNews reported.

The court was hearing a petition moved by Pakistan Institute of Labour, Education and Research's (PILER) chief, Karamat Ali.

Ali had argued that the provincial government, which seeks to 'surrender' Khawaja's services to the federation, should be held in contempt of court as it had defied a previous high court-issued stay on Khawaja's removal.

During a previous hearing of the petition, the court had asked provincial advocate general (AG) under which law Khawaja was removed from his post.

The AG had said the IGP had been appointed under Clause 3 of the Police Act, and that the Sindh govt has the right to appoint an IGP of its own choosing.

However, he was silent when asked if the provincial cabinet had been taken into confidence before the notification for Khawaja's removal was issued.

All governmental powers can only be exercised through the cabinet, the court had told the AG.

The next day, the Sindh Cabinet in a meeting said it would back the decision to 'surrender' Khawaja's services to the federal government.

During the cabinet meeting, chaired by Sindh Chief Minister Murad Ali Shah, the appointment of Dasti as Khawaja's replacement as provincial police chief was also approved.

The decisions were made after AG Sindh Zameer Ghumro briefed the cabinet regarding the ruling of the SHC on the matter.

After the approval was given by the provincial government, the court had extended its stay and asked for a copy of the decision made by the Sindh Cabinet to be provided to it.