Sindh High Court (SHC) on Tuesday showed concern that its orders on police rules for postings and transfers have not been implemented even after passage of three months and directed Sindh government to legislate on it by May 21. A division bench of SHC comprising Justice Hassan Azhar Rizvi and Justice Aziz-ur-Rehman made the observations in a contempt of court plea filed against non-implementation of the court orders regarding the new police rules by Sindh government.
Advocate General Sindh told the court that restoration of Police Order 2002 has been tabled in Sindh Assembly. Justice Rizvi remarked that what is being done in assembly except mudslinging against each other. He noted that three months have passed since the issuance of the court orders for police rules. He inquired who is creating hurdles in this regard.
Advocate General sought some more time and assured the court that the bill would pass from the assembly shortly. Court remarked that how the legislation would be done when the media is reporting that government and opposition are not reaching consensus on the said piece of legislation.
Court gave provincial government one week to do the legislation on the assurance of Advocate General that it would be done very soon. Executive Director of Pakistan Institute of Labour Education and Research (PILER) Karamat Ali filed the petition seeking the framing of police rules for promotion and posting in Sindh Police.
In the previous hearing of the case, provincial government sought the time for the new rules, however it couldn't submit the draft of these rules in the hearing. That prompted displeasure by the court. The petitioner stated that SHC had ordered to make changes in laws and rules regulating the appointment and transfer period of officials in the police department. He had requested for contempt proceedings as the government had failed to comply with the orders.
He stated that former IG Sindh A.D Khawja sent the police rules after framing them thrice, but Sindh government never acted upon these rules. The counsel of petitioner told the court that provincial government wanted to legislate on police order 2019 to make the law of its own choice for transfer and postings. In January and March 2019, a cabinet committee comprising of two ministers and home secretary reviewed the reforms in the police department as part of the efforts to frame the rules for postings and transfers under court orders.