Pakistan Case Law
2003 SCMR 1718

BASHARAT ALI vs GOVERNMENT OF THE PUNJAB and others

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Citation2003 SCMR 1718
CourtSupreme Court of Pakistan
Case No.Civil Petition No,349-L of 2002
Date2003-04-15
Judge(s)Munir A. Sheikh and Faqir Muhammad Khokhar
Authored byMunir A. Sheikh
ResultCase remanded
AI Summary — generated from this judgment; read the full text below and verify before relying on it.

This matter concerns a petition for leave to appeal against a judgment of the Punjab Service Tribunal, which had dismissed the petitioner's appeal regarding disciplinary proceedings initiated against him. The core legal question was whether the Special Secretary, Education (Schools), possessed the lawful authority to impose a penalty upon the petitioner, a civil servant in Grade-17, or if such authority was exclusively vested in the Secretary Education. The petitioner contended that the original penalty order was passed without lawful authority, rendering the subsequent departmental appeals ineffective. Upon review, the Supreme Court noted the admission by the Advocate-General and the Special Secretary that the Education Secretary, as the Head of the Department, is the sole competent authority for officers up to Grade-17. Consequently, the Court set aside the impugned judgment of the Service Tribunal and the underlying departmental orders. The case was remanded to the relevant department for fresh proceedings to be conducted by the competent authority in accordance with the law, establishing the principle that disciplinary actions taken by an officer lacking delegated competence are void ab initio.

Questions settled in this judgment
  • Is an order of penalty passed by an officer lacking the requisite competence legally sustainable?
  • Does the Education Secretary, as Head of the Department, possess exclusive authority to pass disciplinary orders against Grade-17 officers?
  • Can a departmental review petition cure a legal lacuna regarding the lack of authority in the original penalty order?
disciplinary proceedingscompetent authoritycivil servantservice tribunalGrade-17 officerdepartmental appeallawful authority

' MUNIR A. SHEIKH, J.---This petition is directed against the judgment dated 26-11-2001 of the Punjab Service Tribunal through which appeal filed by the petitioner against the order of Departmental Authority has been dismissed.

2. Disciplinary proceedings were initiated against the petitioner at the conclusion of which on 24-8- 1999, the Special Secretary, Education (Schools) imposed penalty against him. He filed departmental appeal before the Chief Secretary which was held to be not maintainable, therefore, he filed review petition which was dismissed by the Secretary Education. The petitioner filed appeal before the Service Tribunal challenging the said order of the Departmental Authority, inter alia, on the ground that original order of imposition of penalty passed by the Special Secretary Education (Schools) was without lawful authority for he being a civil servant in Grade-17, Secretary Education was competent authority to pass the order and even if his review petition was placed before the said Secretary who dismissed the same, it will not in any manner remove the legal lacuna as the original order by Special Secretary, Education (Schools) was without lawful authority.

3. Learned Advocate-General, Punjab was issued notice to assist the Court. Special Secretary, Education (Schools) was also summoned who is present.

4. Both learned Advocate-General and Special Secretary, Education (Schools) say that at the relevant time and even now, in respect of officers up to Grade-17, the Education Secretary who is Head of the Department is the competent authority to pass order, therefore they have no objection if the case is remanded for further proceedings from the stage, when on 24-8-1999, order was passed by the Special Secretary, Education (Schools) to be dealt with by the competent authority.

5. For the foregoing reasons, this petition is converted into appeal, judgment dated 26-11-2001 of the Punjab Service Tribunal alongwith the order dated 24-8-1999 of the Special Secretary, Education (Schools) of imposition of penalty on petitioner and order dated 2-1-2001 of respondent No,1 dismissing his review petition are set aside and the case is remanded to the department concerned for further proceedings by the competent authority in accordance with law.

' No orders as to costs.

Cited by 14 cases

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