ISLAMABAD: Islamabad High Court (IHC) has sought a reply from the Ministry of Law and Justice on a petition filed against Kashmala Tariq for holding office of the federal ombudsperson for protection against harassment of women at the workplace even after lapse of her four-year tenure.

The petitioner contended before the court that Ms Tariq was appointed as ombudsperson on Feb 19, 2018 for a fixed four-year term which ended on Feb 18 this year. The court issued notices to the law ministry and sought comments in a month. The other respondents cited in the petition include the federal government, president and prime minister, provincial secretaries, the National Assembly, and Senate Secretariat.

The petitioner requested the court to stop Ms Tariq from working as federal ombudsperson till disposal of the petition. He contended that the four-year term for the ombudsperson was not extendable and Ms Tariq is holding the office without any legal backing.

IHC Justice Minagul Hassan Aurangzeb heard the arguments on the petition. Further hearing in this matter has been adjourned for a month.

Published in Dawn, July 29th, 2022