ISLAMABAD, April 30: Justice Riaz Ahmed Khan of Islamabad High Court on Monday issued notices to the director, National Command Authority (NCA), Lt-Gen (retired) Khalid Ahmed Qidwai and chairman National Engineering & Scientific Commission (Nescom) on identical petitions seeking initiation of contempt of court proceedings against them. The petitions were filed by four General Managers of Nescom against the extensions of contracts of retired officers in the department.

The IHC bench comprising Justice Riaz Ahmad Khan on March 30 restrained the Nescom authorities from giving extension to the eleven officers after they attained superannuation.

In their contempt of court petition filed through their counsel Raja Saifur Rehman, the petitioners Mohammad Zubair, Mohammad Saeedullah Khan, Zafar Iqbal and Sajid Bashir has adopted before the court that the respondent authorities in utter violation of the court orders has extended the contract of Ghulam Asghar, director general Nescom, on April 1, 2012 as well as other officers despite the fact that the March 30 court orders had properly been conveyed to them.

Citing the NCA director Khalid Ahmad Qidwai, the Nescom chairman, Mohammad Irfan Burney and the Nescom deputy director general Tanveer Minto as respondents, the petitioners adopted before the court that ever since Ghulam Asghar attained superannuation in 2008 he was repeatedly given extensions. On April 1, in sheer violation of the court orders, the respondents granted him another extension which is a clear contempt of court, they added. The attitude of the respondents is not only contemptuous but against the interest of the petitioners.

They requested the court to initiate contempt of court proceedings against the respondents.

In their earlier petition, they had told the IHC bench that 23 officials had been working with the Nescom after retirement.

The petitioners had adopted that the proposed extension was a sheer violation of the Supreme Court orders that held in the Haj corruption case that after retirement no one should be given extension as it blocked the promotion of the junior.