ISLAMABAD: The federal government has abolished the pro forma policy for promotion of bureaucrats that was not only burdening the exchequer but had also inundated the Establishment Division with frequent litigation.

The government led by the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) through a statutory regulatory order (SRO) omitted the proviso that enabled the civil servants to claim pro forma promotion, according to documents available with Dawn.

Pro forma promotion is predating of promotion of a civil servant with effect from the date of promotion of his junior for the purpose of payment of arrears and fixation of pay.

According to the SRO 1 of 2022 issued on May 20 by the Regulations Wing of the Finance Ministry, the prime minister directed to amend the Fundamental Rule 17 commonly known as FR-17.

“In the aforesaid Rule, in Rule 17, in sub rule (1), the proviso shall stand omitted with immediate effect.”

Through a statutory regulatory order, govt omits proviso that enabled civil servants to claim such promotions

The finance ministry also dissolved FR-17 (1) committees. The government has also withdrawn the revised guidelines of 2015 that introduced two committees - Junior Level Committee and High Level Committee - to consider cases for pro forma promotion of civil servants.

As per the guidelines of FR-17 (1) of 2015, the government had enabled an officer “to draw the pay and allowances attached to his tenure of a post with effect from the date when he assumes the duties of that post and shall cease to draw them as soon as he ceased to discharge those duties.”

It added: “The appointing authority may, if satisfied that a civil servant who was entitled to be promoted from a particular date was for no fault of his own wrongfully prevented from rendering service to the federation in the higher post, direct that such civil servants shall be paid the arrears of pay and allowances of such higher post through pro forma promotion or upgradation arising from the antedated fixation of his seniority.”

Interestingly, the Islamabad High Court (IHC) had already made the guidelines of 2015 virtually redundant.

The judegment authored by IHC Chief Justice Justice Athar Minallah made it clear that the pro forma promotion was the sole discretion of the appointing authority and was not a vested right of a civil servant.

An IHC bench, comprising former Justice Shaukat Aziz Siddiqui and Justice Athar Minallah, in the case of former inspector general Mohammad Habib Khan had clarified the rule for such a promotion.

The judgement said: “The appointing authority in the case of the respondent is the prime minister. The latter, from time to time, has laid down guidelines and prescribed a mechanism for processing claims for being considered for extending benefits through pro forma promotion. The last revised guidelines for the purposes of processing the cases of eligible civil servants to be considered pursuant to the proviso to FR-17(1) were issued vide office memorandum dated September 18, 2015…the guidelines issued from time to time, therefore, prescribed the mechanism or procedure for processing the cases and making recommendations to the appointing authority.”

The court ruled that pro forma promotion essentially involved a change of benefits relating to a grade or post, and thus an element of selection; therefore, as a settled law, it cannot be earned automatically, rather it is within the exclusive jurisdiction of the appointing authority.

According to the recent office memorandum on the FR-17(1) Rules, cases complete in all respect received prior to May 20, 2022, “shall continue to be processes.” However, incomplete cases or those received after the said date will not be entertained.

It said the cases of retired civil servants not considered by the Selection Board or the Promotion Committee can only be considered on specific court orders.

Published in Dawn, June 18th, 2022