PESHAWAR, Sept 23: A two-member bench of the Peshawar High Court on Thursday adjourned hearing of two writ petitions challenging the removal of an additional and a deputy advocate-general by the provincial government without the consent of the governor.

The bench comprising Justice Ijaz Afzal and Justice Dost Muhammad directed the government to arrange a counsel for itself as no further adjournments would be allowed. The bench fixed Oct 5 for next hearing with the observation that the government should avoid adopting delaying tactics.

The petitions have been filed by former additional advocate-general Musarrat Hillali and former deputy advocate-general Shaukat Hayat Khakwani. A section officer of the law department appeared before the court and stated that their counsel Essa Khan had declined to represent the government in the case. He requested the court to allow time for engaging a counsel.

Barrister Zahoorul Haq appeared for Ms Hillali and contended that the respondent had been using delaying tactics as the hearing had been adjourned many times on their requests.

He said the government had been delaying the issue on one pretext or another since the petition was admitted to full hearing on June 16. The government had relieved three additional and five deputy advocates-general of their duties on March 6. The petitioners believe that the government has no authority to relieve them without the approval of the governor.

They said that under article 140 of the Constitution the appointing authority of an advocate-general was the governor and he alone could relieve the appointee. The petitioners contended that the government had not taken the governor into confidence while dispensing with their services.

Earlier, the government had informed the court that Advocate-General Barrister Jehanzeb Raheem would not represent it in the petitions.

The government suspected that the advocate-general might concede that the impugned notification was unconstitutional and illegal. Through the impugned notification eight law officers were removed and 10 were appointed, most of whom are believed to be members of the Muttahida Majlis-i-Amal.