Pakistan Case Law
1997 SCMR 169

AYYAZ ANJUM vs GOVERNMENT OF PUNJAB, HOUSING AND PHYSICIAL

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Citation1997 SCMR 169
CourtSupreme Court of Pakistan
Case No.Civil Petition for Leave to Appeal No. 1232-L of 1996Petition No. 3617 of 1996
Date1996-04-24
Judge(s)Saad Saood Jan, Fazal Karim and Muhammad Ilyas
Authored bySaad Saood Jan
ResultCase remanded
AI Summary — generated from this judgment; read the full text below and verify before relying on it.

This matter arises from a petition seeking leave to appeal against an interim order passed by the High Court in a service dispute concerning the inter se transfers and postings of two civil servants serving in the Public Health Engineering Department. The core legal question addressed by the Supreme Court of Pakistan is whether the High Court has jurisdiction to entertain constitutional petitions and issue interim orders in matters relating to the transfer and posting of civil servants. The Supreme Court held that matters relating to the posting and transfer of a civil servant pertain to the terms and conditions of his service, which fall within the exclusive jurisdiction of the appropriate Service Tribunal, thereby barring the jurisdiction of the High Court under Article 212(2) of the Constitution. Consequently, the Court converted the petition into an appeal, set aside the impugned interim order, and directed the High Court to first determine the question of its jurisdiction before making any further interim orders.

Questions settled in this judgment
  • Does the High Court have jurisdiction to entertain matters relating to the posting and transfer of civil servants?
  • Do disputes regarding the transfer of civil servants fall within the exclusive jurisdiction of the Service Tribunal under Article 212(2) of the Constitution?
  • Must the High Court determine the question of its jurisdiction before making any interim order in service matters?
Laws & provisions referred
  • Article 212(2) of the Constitution
civil servanttransfer and postingservice tribunal jurisdictionconstitutional petitionbar of jurisdictioninterim order

ORDER

SAAD SAOOD JAN, J.---The petitioner and Muhammad Younis Chohan, respondent No. 3, are serving in the Public Health Engineering Department. There have been a number of orders relating to their inter se transfers. Both accused the other of invoking political influence in getting posting of his own choice at the cost of the other. Respondent No. 3 filed a Constitutional petition in the High Court to call in question the legality of the order dated 13-3-1996 which was the latest in the series.

The High Court called for the record from the department and in .The meanwhile suspended the impugned order. The petitioner seeks leave to appeal from this Court.

2. Clearly, the matters relating to the posting and transfer of a civil servant relate to the terms and conditions of his service. Disputes about these matters fall within the exclusive jurisdiction of the appropriate Service Tribunal. The jurisdiction of High Court is barred in these matters by the express provisions of Article 212(2) of the Constitution. We are therefore unable to support the interim order made by it in this case. Accordingly, we convert this petition into appeal and set aside the said order. The High Court should first determine the question of its jurisdiction before making any interim order in this case. This appeal is disposed of accordingly.

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