The Supreme Court on Tuesday declared the Employees (Reinstatement) Act 2010 as null and void, in a detailed verdict over petitions, regarding reinstatement of employees removed by the PML-N government in 1997 and reinstated by the PPP government in 2008.
A three-member Supreme Court bench heard the petitions filed by the hundreds of government employees from 72 different Departments. The court’s decision stated that the beneficiaries of the Act of 2010, who are still in service, will go back to their previous positions, before the enactment of the Act of 2010. It further added that it would be inequitable to reverse any monetary benefits received by them under the Act of 2010 for the period they have served and those shall remain intact as they were granted against service. However, the lump sum received by such ‘sacked employees’ upon reinstatement shall be reversed. The apex court maintained that it was the duty of the court to safeguard the rights and interests of the citizens and such application could not be maintained as the constitutional rights of employees who have invested decades of their lifetime into the service of the country, were outrightly violated. Therefore, given the nature of the Act of 2010, and its blatant unconstitutional mechanism, a vested right could not have been created and protected under the doctrine of a past and closed transaction.
In fact, during the first and second tenures of PPP after Zia regime, the Political Elite employed thousands of its voters/sympathizers in several Federal and Provincial Departments while violating set recruitment rules and laws, appointment criteria and procedures of the government and followed the only single rule of “might is right”. This strategy remained successful in Sindh but the following government of PML-N in the center removed all employees from Federal Departments recruited by the PPP on Political grounds. However, the PPP government covered extra miles in protection of nepotism and reinstated all those fired employees through the Employees Act of 2010. In fact, such egoistic and politically motivated behavior and legislation is not restricted to PPP only, other Political Parties also remained involved in such practices to secure their party interests during the past. However, rule of law, impartial and fearless justice is the only way to curb this tendency in our society.
