LAHORE: The Lahore High Court (LHC) was moved on Friday against the appointment of Muhammad Khan Bhatti as principal secretary to Punjab Chief Minister Chaudhry Parvez Elahi.

Advocate Mian Dawood filed a constitutional petition in the court on behalf of a citizen, Akhtar Ali.

It has been argued in the petition that the appointment of Mr Bhatti against the important post of CM’s principal secretary is a violation of the Constitution as per law.

According to the law, an officer serving in one service cadre cannot be posted in another.

The petitioner also said two notifications were issued for the appointment of Mr Bhatti -- first, a simple notification of transfer and posting and another about his posting on deputation.

Both notifications were issued before Parvez Elahi was sworn in as chief minister, he stated.

The petitioner also said that an “uneducated person” had been appointed as the head of highly-educated government officials that was unfair, requesting the court to nullify the appointment.

Published in Dawn, August 6th, 2022