KARACHI, Aug 2: The Sindh High Court on Tuesday suspended the impugned order of the National Industrial Relations Commission on the application of the labour union of the Karachi Electric Supply Company that invoked the jurisdiction of the NIRC under the Industrial Relations Ordinance, 2011.

A division bench headed by Justice Gulzar Ahmed gave the order on a petition of the KESC challenging the existence of the NIRC following the expiry of the Industrial Relations Act, 2008.

The bench after a preliminary hearing of the petition issued notices to the deputy attorney general, the NIRC, the KESC labour union and others for Aug 10 and in the meantime suspended the impugned order of the NIRC till the next date of hearing.

The petitioner's counsel submitted that the Industrial Relations Act, 2008 ceased to be effective on April 30, 2010 and the Supreme Court had also endorsed such expiry in its judgment.

The counsel stated that all provincial governments had industrial relations legislations, which were confined to their respective provincial territories, besides the Industrial Relations Ordinance, 2011 had been promulgated by the president for Islamabad territory.

He said that the NIRC had been constituted by Section 53 of the said ordinance and such commission was to be applied by only those establishments or industries which were established or set up in Islamabad or carrying out business in more than one province.

The counsel submitted that the KESC labour union approached the NIRC under the IRO, 2011 at Islamabad which had no jurisdiction to entertain the application as the KESC did not have its establishment or industry in the capital.

The counsel called in question the jurisdiction of the NIRC to entertain the application of the KESC labour union relating to the affairs of the KESC and submitted that the impugned order of the NIRC on July 28 was without jurisdiction.

He further contended that the NIRC ceased to exist after expiry of the Industrial Relations Act, 2008 and therefore it could not entertain applications even under the Industrial Relations Ordinance, 2011.

SP told to produce 'detainees' in court

A division bench headed by Justice Gulzar Ahmed issued notices to the home secretary, the provincial police chief, the SP of Landhi, the SHO of Ibrahim Haideri police station and others in a petition against the detention of 10 members of a family.

Petitioner Muhammad Hussain, a resident of Ali Muhammed Brohi Goth, Landhi, submitted in his petition that the area SP, SHO and the in charge of the Ibrahim Haideri police kiosk, Altaf, raided his house on July 26 and took away his father, Muhammed Siddique, his sister Shabbiran, and her eight children — Laloo, Nadir, Mir Ali, Raja, Amir Ali, Parveen, Soobi and Farzana.

He stated that the raiding party came along with a private respondent, Hussain Bux, and they also took away Rs25,000 and others articles from the house.

The petitioner, represented by Advocate Sabira Qaiser, stated that he went to the respondent SHO to inquire if any FIR was registered against his father and other relatives. He said he was told that there was no FIR against his relatives, but the SHO demanded a bribe for the release of the detainees.

He said that the whereabouts of his relatives were still unknown and prayed to the court to direct the respondents to produce the detained people in court.

He prayed to the court to direct the inspector general of the police to provide him and his family protection.

The petitioner also prayed to the court to order the registration of a kidnapping case against the respondent SP, the SHO and the kiosk in charge. The bench also issued a notice to the Advocate General and directed the area SP to produce the alleged detainees in court on the next date of hearing i.e. Aug 4.