KARACHI, Dec 23: The Supreme Court has refused the Defence Housing Authority leave to appeal against a Federal Service Tribunal decision reinstating a sacked employee of the authority.

The services of respondent Ghulam Mustafa Khan, who taught at a school run by the DHA for six years, were terminated in 1994 without a show cause notice or an inquiry. The FST held in 2002 that the order was void and reinstated him with full consequential benefits from the date of dismissal. The DHA moved the Supreme Court for leave to appeal.

Chief Justice Nazim Hussain Siddiqui and Justice Abdul Hameed Dogar, who constituted the SC bench that heard the DHA petition, upheld the FST ruling that since the dismissal order was ab initio void, the authority could not be allowed to plead that the appeal filed by the employee before the tribunal was time-barred or that he had received his gratuity without reservation.

'The issue of limitation is of no consequence, nor acceptance of benefits furnishes a ground to the petitioner to violate its own rules and the law laid down by this court', it observed.

The bench, however, allowed the authority to hold an inquiry against the employee in accordance with the rules within four months. The question of consequential benefits would depend on the outcome of the inquiry, it observed. Advocate Mohammad Naseem appeared for the employee and Barrister Chaudhry Mohammad Jameel for the DHA.

SHOW CAUSE NOTICES: The FST issued show cause notices for contempt of court to the four National Refinery Limited officers for not complying with its order staying transfer of its employees, Mohammad Farman and M. Aftab Ahmed.