KARACHI, Sept 3: The Supreme Court said on Monday that the chief secretary and the acting chief of Sindh police had completely failed to satisfy the court over the delay in implementing the verdict on out-of-turn promotions in the police department, and granted them a last chance to review the cases of 56 officers within three days.

The officials told the court that a notification for the withdrawal of promotions of three police officers — Mirza Shahbaz Mughal, Abdul Jabbar Qaimkhani and Hamid Ali Burgri — would be issued the same day (Monday) while a notification of the repatriation of Abdul Waheed Sheikh, a deputy director of the Intelligence Bureau serving in the Sindh police on deputation, was also being withdrawn on Monday.

A three-member bench comprising Justices Anwar Zaheer Jamali, Amir Hani Muslim and Muhammad Athar Saeed was hearing the proceedings regarding the non-implementation of a court order in out-of-turn promotion cases in the police department.

On a previous hearing, the apex court had issued show-cause notices to the Sindh chief secretary and the acting inspector-general of Sindh police asking them to explain the inordinate delay in implementing the verdict of the Sindh High Court dated March 31, 2009 against out-of-turn promotions of police officers.

The court said that the chief secretary in his reply had conceded that apart from holding a meeting of the committee, constituted to review the out-of-turn promotions cases, no progress had been made for the implementation of the SHC order against which an appeal preferred before the SC was withdrawn.

He also failed to explain the inordinate delay and any substantial progress of scrutiny in the matter of 56 officers of the police department, but produced a list of the three police officers who had been given out-of-turn promotions in clear defiance of the SHC judgment, it added.

The apex court further said that the acting IG had given almost the same facts as unfolded by the chief secretary in his reply, adding that when confronted about out-of-turn promotions of the three police officers, neither the chief secretary nor the acting IG had offered any plausible explanation. However, advocate-general of Sindh Abdul Fateh Malik admitted that such a course adopted for granting out-of-turn promotions to the three officers in the ranks of sub-inspector and inspector were in total defiance of the spirit of the judgment.

“Upon instruction from the chief secretary, he stated that notification for withdrawal of such out of turn promotions will be issued today to cure such patent illegality and copy of the same will be submitted for perusal of this court by tomorrow (Tuesday)”, it added.

The bench observed that the chief secretary and the acting IG also remained answerless over the induction case of Abdul Wahab Sheikh and stated that a notification for the repatriation of the officer would be issued on Monday and a copy would be placed before the court on Monday and he would accordingly relinquish the charge.

The three-member bench apex court further ruled that they were totally dissatisfied with the explanation of the chief secretary and the acting IG, “but in order to afford one more opportunity, as mater of indulgence, three days further time is allowed, as a final chance for the committee to scrutinise the cases of 56 police officers, who were granted out-of-turn promotions of section 9-A of the Sindh Civil Servants Act 1973 and to submit their report for the perusal of this court on the next date of hearing and its further due process in accordance with law”.

The bench adjourned the hearing till Sept 6 and directed the chief secretary, acting IG, secretary (SGACD) and home secretary to be present before it with the relevant record and report.

The court also put advocate-general of Sindh on further notice to make a statement before the court on next hearing that whether or not it would be appropriate for the court to take suo motu cognizance to examine the vires and constitutionality of Section 9-A while entertaining these proceedings.