IN THE HIGH COURT OF SINDH

CIRCUIT COURT, LARKANA

Present:

Irshad Ali Shah, J.

Agha Faisal, J.

CP D315 of 2012                 :           Jawad Hussain Tunio vs.

Executive Engineer PHED & Others

For the Petitioners               :           Mr. Ghulam Murtaza Jokhio, Advocate

For the Respondents          :           Mr. Abdul Hamid Bhurgri, Addl. A.G.

Dates of hearing                  :           01.02.2022.

Date of announcement      :           01.02.2022.

ORDER

Agha Faisal, J.         The petitioner claimed to have been employed on contract in BPS-17 and seeks regularization, notwithstanding the admitted fact that the term of his contract has long since expired. In addition to his claim for regularization, payment of salaries is also sought with effect from July, 2011, being the period post cessation of thepurported employment.

2. At the very outset learned counsel for petitioner was confronted as to how a petition for regularization could be maintained in the absence of any subsisting relationship between the parties. It was further queried as to how a claim for salary was preferred for the period when admittedly no relationship existed between the parties. Learned counsel remained unable to satisfy the Court in such regard.

3. Heard and perused. The plea of the petitioner is for regularization of employment in BPS-17, in the presence of settled law that regular appointment in such regard was only possible through the competitive process under the supervision of the competent authority.

4. The august Supreme Court has maintained in Khushal Khan[1] that the High Court lacked jurisdiction to revive, amend or alter contracts; there was no vested right to seek regularization for employees hired on contractual basis unless there was legal and statutory basis for the same; contractual  employees  had  no  automatic  right  to  be regularized unless the same has specifically been provided for in a law; and that the relationship of contractual employees is governed by principles of master and servant.A Division Bench of this Court has held in Anjum Badar[2] that contractual employees had no vested right for regular appointment or to seek regularization of their services, hence, were debarred from invoking the constitutional jurisdiction of this Court.

5. It is trite law that contractual employees are devoid of any generic entitlement for regularization[3]. Petitioner's counsel has been unable to identify any specific law conferring any right upon the petitioner to be considered for regularization[4]. It is, thus, our deliberated view that the petitioner has failed to set forth a case for exercise of the discretionary[5] writ jurisdiction of this Court.

6. In view hereof, this petition is found to be misconceived, hence, hereby dismissed.

                                                                   JUDGE

JUDGE

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[1]Per Ijaz ul Ahsan J in Khushal Khan Khattak University & Others vs. Jabran Ali Khan & Others reported as 2021 SCMR 977.

[2]Per Nadeem Akhtar J in Anjum Badar vs. Province of Sindh & Othersreported as PLD 2021 Sindh 328.

[3]Per Ijaz ul Ahsan J in Govt of KPK vs. Jawad Ali & Others reported as 2021 SCMR 185; Per Mansoor Ali Shah J in Province of Punjab vs. Dr. Javed Iqbal reported as 2021 SCMR 767; Per Ijaz ul Ahsan J in Owais Shams Durrani vs. Vice Chancellor Bacha Khan University reported as 2020 SCMR 2041; Per Miangul Hassan Aurangzeb J in First Womens Bank vs. Muhammad Tayyab reported as 2020 PLC (C.S.) 86.

[4]Per Ijaz ul Ahsan J in Govt of KPK Welfare Board vs. Raheel Ali Gohar & Others  reported as 2020 SCMR 2068;

[5] Per Ijaz Ul Ahsan J. in Syed Iqbal Hussain Shah Gillani vs. PBC & Others reported as 2021 SCMR 425; Muhammad Fiaz Khan vs. Ajmer Khan & Another reported as 2010 SCMR 105.