Regularisation of services: LHC issues notices to respondents for September 10

A division bench of the Lahore High Court (LHC) here Wednesday issued notices to respondents for September 10 in an Intra Court Appeal (ICA) of the provincial government against the LHC decision directing the government to consider the regularisation of the services of 87 assistant district public prosecutors.
Earlier LHC rejecting the request of the law officer for stay against the LHC single bench verdict issued notices to the respondents for next date of hearing. The prosecutors Syed Mehmoodul Hassan and others had contended before the court that former Punjab Chief Minister Pervez Elahi had appointed 750 assistant district public prosecutors on one-year contract.
Later they approached Supreme Court for regularisation, however, the prosecution department took a plea before the court that it could not regularised the services of the petitioners. They said the SC had constituted a committee to interview the prosecutors and out of 750 only 87 including petitioners succeeded. And the successful were given another contract of one year.
Later, Punjab government in 2010 approved regularisation of all contract employees working in different departments but the prosecution department had not made their services regular. Resultantly, they filed petition in the LHC for their regularisation in light of the provincial government decision.
Petitioners said the department terminated their services on June 30, 2011 and restrained them from working on the pretext of that their service contracts had been terminated or came to an end. They pointed out that LHC had on March 30, last restrained the department from taking any adverse action against them during the pendency of the petition.
Petitioner prayed that the respondent department be directed to allow them to perform their duties as before June 30, 2011 and to regularise their services in the light of the government decision.
The prosecution department through its counsel contended that the petitioners could not be regularised unless they pass examination hold by Punjab Public Service Commission. The petitioners, therefore, should participate in the examination to be conducted by the commission, he added. The court accordingly had passed the orders, which has now been challenged before the court again in ICA.