' This judgment is intended to dispose of the following writ petitions as identical questions of law and facts are involved therein:
(i) Writ Petition No, 2617-S-97/BWP Farooq Ahmed v. Deputy Director, Education (Colleges), Bahawalpur Division, Bahawalpur and Secretary, Education, Government of Punjab, Lahore.
(ii) Writ Petition No, 2652-S-97/BWP Hafiz Bilal Ahmed v. Deputy Director, Education (Colleges), Bahawalpur Division, Bahawalpur and Secretary, Education, Government of Punjab, Lahore.
(iii) Writ Petition No, 2768-S-97/BWP Muhammad Nadeem v. Deputy Director, Education (Colleges), Bahawalpur Division, Bahawalpur and Secretary, Education, Government of Punjab, Lahore.
2. In daily newspaper "Nawa-e-Waqt", Multan published on 29-1-1997 an advertisement was got published by Professor Mr. Nazeer Ahmad, Deputy Director, Education (Colleges) Bahawalpur Division, Bahawalpur on behalf of the Directorate of Education (Colleges) Bahawalpur Division, Bahawalpur for the recruitment of different categories of officials. The applications were invited till 2-2-1997 alongwith the copies of the requisite testimonials. After the selection the Merit List according to the requisite numbers of the selected candidates was to be displayed on the Notice Board of the Directorate of Education (Colleges) Bahawalpur Division, Bahawalpur on 6-2-1997 and Letters of Appointments on the basis of the merit list were to be issued on 23-2-1997. Farooq'Ahmed and Hafiz Bilal Ahmed competed for the post of Lecture Assistant (BS-7) alongwith others while Muhammad Nadeem competed for the post of Junior Clerk/Library Clerk (BS-5) alongwith others.
3. The Departmental Recruitment Committee of the Directorate of Education (Colleges)
Bahawalpur Division, Bahawalpur comprised the following Officers of the Education Department: {{TABLE}}
1. Mr. Nazir Ahmad, Deputy Director (Colleges) Chairman Directorate of Education (C), Bahawalpur Division, Bahawalpur.
2. Mrs. Ayesha Javed, Assistant Director (Colleges) Member Directorate of Education (C), Bahawalpur Division, Bahawalpur.
3. Mr. Muhammad Haleem, Assistant Director (Stat)/ Member Departmental Representative, Directorate of Public Instruction (C), Punjab, Lahore.
4. After. Performing all the formalities and holding the competition . amongst the contestants/candidates following persons were selected as Lecture Assistant (Male) BS-7:
1. Hafiz Muhammad Sarwar Recommended.
Sic) Ghulam Rasool, Medical Colony, Bahawalpur.
2. Mr. Farooq Ahmed S/o Recommended.
Ghulam Farid, Kushin Zaree (Writ Services, Liaquatpur. Petitioner)
3. Mr. Saeed-ul-Hassan S/o Recommended.
Nazir Ahmed, Aziz Abad Colony, R.Y. Khan.
4. Ghulam Murtaza S/o Recommended.
Ghulam Rasool, Faisal Colony, Bahawalpur.
5. Hafiz Bilai Ahmed S/o Recommended.
Allah Bux, Hamatian, Bahawalpur. (Writ petitioner)
6. Mr. Muhammad Shafiq Recommended.
Rasool S/o Sabir Hussain, Ghareebabad Colony, Bahawalpur.
7. Ghulam Abbas S/o Recommended.
Ahmed Din, Yazman.
8. Mr. Muhammad Arshad Recommended.
SA) Muhammad Abdullah Basti Ghodoo Wali, Bahawalpur.
9. Mr. Muhammad Rustam Recommended.
S/o Allah Wasaya, Khairpur Daha, Ahmedpur.
10. Mr. Abdur Rauf Khan Recommended.
S/o Abdul Waheed Khan, Mohallah Qureshabad, Ahmedpur East.
11. S. Naseem Abbas S/o Recommended.
S. Niaz Hussain (Late) He has been awarded New Sadiq Colony, Bahawalpur 10 Marks in lieu of in service death of his father serving in Edu. Department (D.A. Accordingly)
12. Mr. Aziz Ahmed Khan Recommended S/o Rafiq Ahmed Khan on waiting. Mohallah Qureshan, Bahawalpur.
13. Syed Jawad-ul-Haq Bukhari --do- S/o S. Ibrar-ul-Haq, Trust Colony, Bahawalpur.
14. Hafiz Hameed Ullah S/o --do- Muhammad Siddique, 8/F.W. Bakhshan Khan, Chishtian.
Following Lecture Assistants (Female) in BS-7 were selected: Following candidates were selected as Junior Clerks (Male) in BS-5.
1. Rehana Yasmeen d/o Recommended.
Abdul Sattar Jinnah Park, Rahimyar Khan.
2. Zeb-un-Nisa d/o Recommended.
Shabbir Hussain H.No, 183/C, Satellite, Bahawalpur.
3. Jamila Arif d/o Recommended.
Muhammad Arif, Hasilpur
4. Naseem Akhtar d/o Recommended.
Ghulam Nabi, 25/B.C.
Bahawalpur.
5. Fouzia Iqbal d/o Recommended.
Muhammad Iqbal, H.No, 1962/B-3, Bahawalpur.
6. Afshan Naveed d/o Recommended.
Muhammad Ismail, 25/B.C., Bahawalpur.
Civilervices
7. Saima Jaffar d/o Recommended.
Jaffar Hussain, Sadiqabad.
8. Tasleem Akhtar Recommended d/o Allah Rakha, Bakhshan Khan, Chishtian. On waiting.
9. Fouzia Parveen d/o -do- Salah-ud-Din, 9/BC, Bahawalpur.
1. Mr. Hassan Muhammad Khalid Recommended.
S/o Ghulam Mustafa, 58/D.B.
Yazman.
2. M. Waseem Ahmed S/o Recommended.
Muhammad Rafiq, Major Colony, Bahawalpur.
3. Mr. Muzaffar Mehmood S/o Recommended.
Abdul Latif, Rehmat Colony, Bahawalpur.
4. Mr. Muhammad Akbar S/o Recommended.
Muhammad Iqbal, Mouza Badana, Hasilpur.
5. Mr. Muhammad Nadeem S/o Recommended.
Allah Bux, Bahawalpur Museum.
6. Mr. Nadeem Shahzad S/o Recommended.
Muzaffar Hussain, H. No,18/D, Satellite Town, Bahawalpur.
7. Mr. Khadim Hussain S/o Recommended.
S3rdar Ali Ward No, 2, Minchinabd.
8. Mr. Shafique Ahmed S/o Recommended.
Munir Ahmed, 28/3-R, Haroonabad.
9. Mr. Abdul Waheed S/o Recommended.
H. Ghulam Muhammad, Mohallah Jamani, Khairpur.
10. Mr. Muhammad Akbar S/o Recommended.
Muhammad Ramzan, Model Town-B, Bahawalpur.
11. Mr. Maqsood Ahmed Paracha Recommended.
S/o Muhammad Hanif, Faisal Colony, Bahawalnagar.
12. Mr. Muhammad Yasin S/o Allah Jawaya, Mouza Sahalan, Bahawalpur.
13. Mr. Muhammad Ashraf S/o Muhammad Ashiq, 19/G, Chishtian.
14. Mr. Siraj Ahmed S/o Sultan Ahmed, Mouza Dera Ezzat, Bahawalpur.
15. Mr. Ahmed Hassan S/o Muhammad Yar, Ismailpur Baluchan;.Minchinabad.
16. Mr. Adnan Mustafa S/o Ghulam Mustafa, 294/11, One Unit Colony, Bahawalpur.
17. Mr. Muhammad Nadeem S/o Ajmal Hussain, Mohallah Bagh Mahi, Bahawalpur.
18. Mr. Ahmed Ali S/o Fazal Din Basti Akhtarabad, Bahawalpur.
19. Mr. Muhammad Amjad Khan S/o Muhammad Abbas Khan, Bongha Baluchan, Minchinabad.
20. Mr. Nadeem Akhtar S/o Muhammad Saleem Javed, Shandara, Bahawalapur.
21.
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25. Mr. Muhammad Ashraf S/o H. Bashir Ahmed, Model Town-B, Bahawalpur.
22. Mr. Rais Nazir Ahmed S/o Recommended Rais Bakhshan, Mouza Goth Mahi, on waiting Liaquatpur.
5. It is pertinent to mention that it was informed by the Deputy Director, Education (Colleges)
Bahawalpur Division, Bahawalpur that the Hostel Warden, (Female) and Assistant/Head Clerks
(Male) were also selected by the aforesaid Departmental Recruitment Committee. It was also intimated that the relevant lists of all the selectees were displayed on the Notice Board on 16-2- 1997 after removal of objections.
6. The writ petitioners alongwith the other selectees went to the Directorate of Education (Colleges)
Bahawalpur Division, Bahawalpur on 23-2-1997 to fetch the appointment letters when no appointment order was issued in their respective name. They have filed these Constitutional petitions on the ground of the infringement of their fundamental right seeking the direction to the respondents for the issuance of the appointment letters/orders in their respective name. These writ petitions were admitted and the adverse party was directed to submit the written statement.
Respondent No, 1 has submitted the written statement wherein all the contentions have been admitted, but it has been asserted that Letter No, PS/ES/860/97, dated 22-2-1997 was issued by the Government of Punjab, Education Department that no further appointment letters in the Education Department shall be issued until further orders and the order had to take the immediate effect.
7. On the direction of this Court Syed Waseem Raza Jafri, Under Secretary, Education Department appeared on 15-7-1997 who also took up the stand that even though the writ petitioners were properly selected, they could not be appointed due to the ban imposed by the Education Department with effect from 22-2-1997.
8. I have heard the learned counsel for the writ petitioners as well as the learned Assistant Advocate-General and gone through the record before me. The contention of the learned counsel for the petitioners is that the proclamation about the recruitment was published on 29-1-1997 when the caretaker Government was in power and that the petitioners were selected on merit. He continued that the merit list was displayed on the relevant Notice Board and thereafter the recruitment was banned through a letter which was received in the office of the Deputy Director, Education (Colleges) Bahawalpur Division, Bahawalpur on 1-3-1997 in view of the receipt Seal which was entered at receipt register 978 dated 1-3-1997. He maintained that the writ petitioners are the citizens of the country who have been selected through competition before ban was imposed by the Government and that they are entitled to be appointed. On the contrary learned Assistant Advocate-General appearing on behalf of the respondents laid the emphasis that appointment letters were to be issued on 23-2-1997 according to the publication published in the daily newspaper on 29-1-1997 while the ban for the recruitment was imposed on 22-2-1997 by the Education Department, Punjab, Lahore. He added that in this view of the matter the petitioners have no case. I am, however, in full agreement with the learned counsel for the petitioners. At the very outset I would express that provisions of Article 199 of the Constitution confer very wide power on High Court for enforcement of fundamental and legal rights. It would be proper to express that Article 199 of the Constitution provides remedy for the infringement of fundamental and legal right of a person. However, the condition precedent to the granting of any relief under said Article 199 of the Constitution depends on existence of fundamental and legal right of a person and of infringement of such right. Further the right which is the foundation of Article 199 of the Constitution is a personal and individual right. The legal right may be a statutory right recognised by law. A person could be said to be aggrieved when a person was denied a legal right by someone who had legal duty to perform relating to that right. In the instant matter, the admitted facts are that according to the proclamation published on 29-1-1997 the petitioners submitted the applications.
They competed in accordance with law. They were selected by the Departmental Recruitment Committee of Directorate of Education (Colleges) Bahawalpur Division, Bahawalpur. The Merit List in the matter was displayed after removal of objections on 16-2-1997 i,e, before 22-2-1997 on which date the ban was imposed upon the recruitment. This was done intentionally because the appointment letters/orders were to be handed over to the selectees on 23-2-1997. My confirmed view is that some days before 22-2-1997 the petitioners had acquired a valuable fundamental right for entry in service on the basis of their success in the Test and Interview conducted by the Departmental Recruitment Committee according to the rules and thereafter display of Merit List on the Notice Board on 16-2-1997. The petitioners are entitled to equality before law as it was conceded that some of the posts entered in advertisement dated 29-1-1997 have been filled. I must express that Pakistan is an Islamic democratic country where there is a Constitution providing the fundamental rights to the citizens. Muss fuss emanates about the recruitment of the persons without merit during the political regime(s) and I need not mention more than that lest it may not prejudice any person or political party. However, during the days of the caretaker Government this type of allegation cannot be levelled and particularly about the aforesaid type of posts. The petitioners were recruited during the caretaker Government and the merit list was displayed on 16- 2-1997 before 22-2-1997. It shall not be out of place to express that the aforesaid letter dated 22-2- 1997 was entered at number 978, dated 1-3-1997 of the register maintained by the Directorate of Education (Colleges) Bahawalpur Division, Bahawalpur. In the circumstances it connately be held that all the persons recruited by the Departmental Recruitment Committee of the Directorate of Education (Colleges) Bahawalpur Division, Bahawalpur against all the posts mentioned in the advertisement published in daily newspaper dated 29-1-1997 are to be honoured by the respondents. It would not be out of place to express that respondents should keep in mind that by their acts many of the selected person may become over-age without no fault on their part and this aspect of the fact has also to be considered for their salubrious future. At this stage I am tempted to express that the uninfluential persons who were selected during the tenure of the caretaker Government cannot be denied their fundamental right through the issuance of aforesaid letter dated 22-2-1997 which is held to be illegal, void and inoperative to that extent. In the Islamic State of Pakistan every person desirous of earning livelihood by the dint of his hard labour is entitled to all the honour which has been provided by the Constitution. The writ petitioners are struggling hard to enter in the service to provide bread and butter to themselves and their family members. They have been selected and the Government cannot deny their right by closing the door of employment to them. I, therefore, hold that the petitioners are entitled to be appointed against the posts for which they have been selected.
9. At this stage I shall be glossing over the important aspect of matter by expressing that only three writ petitioners have entered the portal of this Constitutional Court even though others have also been selected. To enter into litigation has never been liked in the society. I, therefore, hold all the persons selected on merit by the Departmental Recruitment Committee against the posts advertised by the Directorate of Education (Colleges) Bahawalpur Division, Bahawalpur, are entitled to enter the service and to join the same.
10. I, therefore, direct the respondents to issue the appointment letters within a period of 40 days from today to the writ petitioners and all the other selectees of different categories of posts recruited as expressed above. They shall join their duties subject to the fulfillment of the legal and procedural requirements. The notices shall be sent to them for doing the needful. The issuance of appointment letters to all the selectees against all the posts mentioned in advertisement dated 29-1-1997 shall be intimated to the Additional Registrar of this Court within 50 days.
11. These writ petitions are accepted in the aforesaid terms with costs.