2019 PLP (C (PLC(CS)N)

JUSTICE (R) ABDUL SAMI KHAN, CHAIRMAN.

Since common questions of law and facts are involved in the following appeals which are being disposed of through this single judgment:- I) Fareeha Rehman v. Province of the Punjab through Secretary Higher Education Department and others (Service Appeal No.2730/2016). II) Raheela Ghafoor v. Province of the Punjab through Secretary Higher Education Department and others (Service Appeal No.2731/2016). III) Zomra Ilyas v. Province of the Punjab through Secretary Higher Education Department and others (Service Appeal No.2732/2016). IV) Andleeb Iqbal v. Province of the Punjab through Secretary Higher Education Department and others (Service Appeal No.2733/ 2016). V) Noreen Akhtar v. Province of the Punjab through Secretary Higher Education Department and others (Service Appeal No.2734/ 2016). VI) Anjum Iqbal v. Province of the Punjab through Secretary Higher Education Department and others (Service Appeal No.2735/ 2016). VII) Huma Khanum v. Province of the Punjab through Secretary Higher Education Department and others (Service Appeal No.2736/ 2016). VIII) Salma Sajjad v. Province of the Punjab through Secretary Higher Education Department and others (Service Appeal No.2737/ 2016). IX) Shahzadi Bano v. Province of the Punjab through Secretary Higher Education Department and others (Service Appeal No.2738/ 2016). X) Husn e Sehar Zaidi v. Province of the Punjab through Secretary Higher Education Department and others (Service Appeal No.2739/ 2016). XI) Sarwat Jameel v. Province of the Punjab through Secretary Higher Education Department and others (Service Appeal No.2740/ 2016). XII) Nasreen Akhtar v. Province of the Punjab through Secretary Higher Education Department and others (Service Appeal No.2741/ 2016). XIII) Saima Andleeb v. Province of the Punjab through Secretary Higher Education Department and others (Service Appeal No.2742/ 2016). XIV) Irum Batool v. Province of the Punjab through Secretary Higher Education Department and others (Service Appeal No.2946/ 2016). XV) Samina Kousar v. Province of the Punjab through Secretary Higher Education Department and others (Service Appeal No.2947/ 2016). XVI) Nazia v. Province of the Punjab through Secretary Higher Education Department and others (Service Appeal No.2948/ 2016). XVII) Sarwat v. Province of the Punjab through Secretary Higher Education Department and others (Service Appeal No.2949/ 2016). XVIII) Maqbool v. Province of the Punjab through Secretary Higher Education Department and others (Service Appeal No.2950/ 2016). XIX) Uzma Zaidi v. Province of the Punjab through Secretary Higher Education Department and others (Service Appeal No.2951/ 2016). XX) Uzma Nasir v. Province of the Punjab through Secretary Higher Education Department and others (Service Appeal No.2952/ 2016). XXI)Rashida v. Province of the Punjab through Secretary Higher Education Department and others (Service Appeal No.2953/ 2016). XXII) Zoufishan v. Province of the Punjab through Secretary Higher Education Department and others (Service Appeal No.2954/2016). XXIII) Parveen Akhtar v. Province of the Punjab through Secretary Higher Education Department and others (Service Appeal No.2955/ 2016). XXIV) Ansar un Nisa v. Province of the Punjab through Secretary Higher Education Department and others (Service Appeal No.2956/ 2016). XXV) Tasneem v. Province of the Punjab through Secretary Higher Education Department and others (Service Appeal No.2957/ 2016). XXVI) Benish v. Province of the Punjab through Secretary Higher Education Department and others (Service Appeal No.2958/ 2016). XXVII) Zubia Ilyas v. Province of the Punjab through Secretary Higher Education Department and others (Service Appeal No.2959/ 2016). XXVIII) Farzana Akhtar v. Province of the Punjab through Secretary Higher Education Department and others (Service Appeal No.2960/ 2016). XXIX) Naveeda v. Province of the Punjab through Secretary Higher Education Department and others (Service Appeal No.2961/ 2016). XXX) Saba v. Province of the Punjab through Secretary Higher Education Department and others (Service Appeal No.2962/ 2016). XXXI) Fatima v. Province of the Punjab through Secretary Higher Education Department and others (Service Appeal No.2963/ 2016). XXXII) Razia Nadeem v. Province of the Punjab through Secretary Higher Education Department and others (Service Appeal No.2964/ 2016). XXXIII) Wajeeha v. Province of the Punjab through Secretary Higher Education Department and others (Service Appeal No.2965/ 2016). XXXIV) Saima v. Province of the Punjab through Secretary Higher Education Department and others (Service Appeal No.2966/ 2016). XXXV) Sadia Iftikhar v. Province of the Punjab through Secretary Higher Education Department and others (Service Appeal No.2967/ 2016). XXXVI) Saiqa v. Province of the Punjab through Secretary Higher Education Department and others (Service Appeal No.2968/ 2016). XXXVII) Razia Sultana v. Province of the Punjab through Secretary Higher Education Department and others (Service Appeal No.2969/ 2016). XXXVIII) Aneela Hafeez v. Province of the Punjab through Secretary Higher Education Department and others (Service Appeal No.2970/ 2016). XXXIX) Mobeen Afshan v. Province of the Punjab through Secretary Higher Education Department and others (Service Appeal No.2971/2016). XL) Roohi Azhar v. Province of the Punjab through Secretary Higher Education Department and others (Service Appeal No.2972/ 2016) XLI) Nargis v. Province of the Punjab through Secretary Higher Education Department and others (Service Appeal No.2973/ 2016). XLII) Shazia Wahid v. Province of the Punjab through Secretary Higher Education Department and others (Service Appeal No.2974/ 2016). XLIII) Farah v. Province of the Punjab through Secretary Higher Education Department and others (Service Appeal No.2975/ 2016). XLIV) Irum Raheela v. Province of the Punjab through Secretary Higher Education Department and others (Service Appeal No.2976/ 2016). XLV) Shabana v. Province of the Punjab through Secretary Higher Education Department and others (Service Appeal No.2977/ 2016). XLVI) Aneela Gul v. Province of the Punjab through Secretary Higher Education Department and others (Service Appeal No.2978/ 2016). XLVII) Qurat ur Ain v. Province of the Punjab through Secretary Higher Education Department and others (Service Appeal No.4058/ 2016). XLVIII) Safia Amjad Malik v. Province of the Punjab through Secretary Higher Education Department and others (Service Appeal No.4059/ 2016). XLIX) Munazza Mufti v. Province of the Punjab through Secretary Higher Education Department and others (Service Appeal No.4060/ 2016). L) Shazia Jabeen v. Province of the Punjab through Secretary Higher Education Department and others (Service Appeal No.4061/ 2016). LI) Rizwana Nazir v. Province of the Punjab through Secretary Higher Education Department and others (Service Appeal No.4062/ 2016). LII) Farzana Khan v. Province of the Punjab through Secretary Higher Education Department and others (Service Appeal No.4063/ 2016). LIII) Uzma Tariq v. Province of the Punjab through Secretary Higher Education Department and others (Service Appeal No.4064/ 2016). LIV) Ghazala Naz v. Province of the Punjab through Secretary Higher Education Department and others (Service Appeal No.4065/ 2016).

2. Appellants filed instant appeals under section 4 of the Punjab Service Tribunal Act, 1974 praying that the appellants may be regularized in their services w.e.f. their date of initial appointments with all back pensionary and other benefits and their previous length of service about 15 years be considered as a regular employee and seniority may also be fixed from the date of original appointments and the probation period may also be considered as regular service by way of setting aside the impugned order dated 9.5.2016.

3. Briefly, the departmental authorities established eight colleges during the period from 1998-1999 and the Director of Education (Colleges), Rawalpindi recruited 70 female lecturers along with other staff on contract basis through Departmental Selection Committee for a period of three years with the approval of the competent authority. The Higher Education Department extended their contract services from time to time but they were not regularized despite rendering long service without break. It is also mentioned that the services of other lecturers recruitment by the respondent department during this period were regularized gradually. Appellants along with other female lecturers filed Writ Petitions Nos.2713/2009 and 2722/2009 in the Lahore High Court, Rawalpindi Bench, Rawalpindi for regularization of their services. The said writ petitions were accepted vide orders dated 4.4.2012 with the following direction:-- "For the reasons supra, both the writ petition are accepted and the respondents are directed to regularize the petitioners with immediate effect within a period of two months". Thereafter, the respondent department filed I.C.A. No.155/2012 assailing the judgment dated 4.4.2012 which was dismissed vide order dated 16.5.2013, hence the judgment of the Hon'ble Lahore High Court, Rawalpindi Bench, Rawalpindi has attained finality. In compliance of the order of the Hon'ble Lahore High Court, Rawalpindi Bench, Rawalpindi, appellants along with other lecturers who were on the strength of Higher Education Department on 4.12.2014 were regularized into government service with immediate effect vide Notification No.SO(CE-III)61-2/2009 dated 4.12.2014 and not from the date of their initial appointments. Aggrieved of the notification dated 4.12.2014, appellant preferred departmental appeals which were not decided and later on, appellants filed Service Appeals Nos. 1788, 1790 to 1800 of 2015 and 2050 to 2090 of 2015 which were decided by this Tribunal vide order dated 18.2.2016 with direction to the Secretary, Higher Education Department, Government of the Punjab, Lahore to decide the pending representations/departmental appeals of the appellants within a period of 30 days. In deference to the same, the Secretary, Higher Education Department, Government of the Punjab, Lahore vide order dated 9.5.2016 decided the representations/ departmental appeals of the appellants and refused the claim of the appellants as prayed. Hence these appeal.

4. I have considered the arguments of both parties and perused the record.

5. It is established from the record that the appellants were appointed as female lecturers through Departmental Selection Committee in the year, 1998-99 on contract basis for a period of three years. The contract services of the appellants were extended from time to time without any break for about 15 years.

6. It has been noticed that the appellants were met with discriminatory treatment which is established from the facts and documentary evidence relied upon by the learned Counsel for the appellants that the other employees of the Government of the Punjab through different orders/ notifications were regularized but the claim of the appellants that their employment may be regularized from the date of initial appointments was refused which shows that they have been dealt with discrimination by the Higher Education Department, Government of the Punjab. In this regard I may observe here that it has been settled by the Hon'ble Supreme Court of Pakistan that seniority of a civil servant was to be reckoned from the date of initial appointment and not from the date of conformation or regularization.

7. In this regard reliance can easily be placed on the judgment of the Full Bench of the Hon'ble Supreme Court of Pakistan titled as "Muhammad Aslam Awan, Advocate Supreme Court v. Federation of Pakistan and others" reported as 2014 SCMR 1289 held as under:- "civil servant

Seniority of

Reckoned from date of initial appointment

In service matters, while considering the seniority of civil servants, the seniority was reckoned from the date of initial appointment and not from the date of confirmation or regularization".

8. For what has been discussed above, I came to the conclusion that the appellants were entitled for regularization from the date of their initial appointments as Lecturers, hence these appeals are allowed by setting the impugned orders. MH/2/PST Appeal allowed.