LAHORE: A complaint has been filed with the Supreme Judicial Council (SJC) challenging the appointment of the Lahore High Court (LHC) registrar for being allegedly made in violation of rules and regulations.

Advocate Mian Maqsood Ahmad, the complainant, submits that LHC Chief Justice Muhammad Ameer Bhatti soon after the assumption of his charge committed an illegality by appointing and posting a serving sessions judge, Irfan Saeed, as registrar of the court.

He pleads that the impugned act of the chief justice is in contravention of rule 6 of the LHC appointment and conditions of service rules 1956 amended up to 1979.

He says previously the post of the registrar was in the BS-20 when it was upgraded to Bs-21 through an office order in 1998 and subsequently to BS-22 in 2005.

The lawyer argues that the present rules envisage only a CSP officer or a member of the high court establishment can be appointed/posted as the registrar likewise in the Supreme Court and the Islamabad High Court.

He asks the SJC to restrain the respondent sessions judge from working as the registrar of the LHC and declare his appointment as illegal. As a stop-gap arrangement, he pleads that a person qualified to be posted as a registrar should be appointed till a final decision on the complaint.

Published in Dawn, June 6th, 2023