IHC vacates stay on recruitment in federal depts from other provinces

ISLAMABAD: The Islamabad High Court (IHC) has vacated its stay order in a petition challenging recruitment in departments of the federal capital from other provinces, allowing new hiring under the existent policy. A larger bench comprising Chief Justice Sardar Muhammad Sarfraz Dogar, Justice Khadim Hussain Soomro, and Justice Raja Muhammad Inaam Amin Minhas withdrew its earlier order, issued on August 1, 2024, which had halted hiring in several federal departments, including 1, 300 vacancies in the Islamabad Police. Barrister Yawar Gardezi, the petitioner, had sought a declaration against “any quota of any unit/ province of the Federation, other than the Islamabad Capital Territory, in any and all jobs or posts in departments of the Islamabad Capital Territory. ” The IHC ordered that recruitment, including in Islamabad, be carried out in accordance with the existing quota system. READ ALSO: Recruitment in police dept: LHC dismisses 60 pleas seeking concession in age limit The court observed that recruitment had remained suspended since 2024, depriving people of employment opportunities. It further noted that when the federation was established, people from across the country settled in Islamabad. Barrister Gardezi requested the court to declare any quota for provinces other than the Islamabad Capital Territory in ICT departments as illegal and ultra vires to the Constitution, and to rule that only Islamabad domicile holders are eligible for such posts. He also asked the court to declare quotas for provinces in posts of pay scales 6 to 15 in federal departments serving only Islamabad as unconstitutional and in violation of Rules 14 and 15 of the 1973 Rules, and to restrict eligibility to Islamabad domicile holders. The petitioner further prayed that all appointments of individuals without an Islamabad domicile in ICT departments and federal government posts in Islamabad under Rules 15 and 16 of the 1973 Rules be declared illegal and unconstitutional, and that such individuals be removed from their positions. Additionally, he requested the court to direct amendments to the 1973 Rules to establish a separate quota for residents of the Islamabad Capital Territory under Rule 14. He also urged the court to declare Rule 10 of the 2011 Rules and Rule 9 of the Islamabad High Court Rules as unconstitutional. Furthermore, he prayed that only Islamabad domicile holders be eligible for appointment as judicial officers—Civil Judges, Senior Civil Judges, Magistrates, District and Sessions Judges, and Additional District and Sessions Judges— under the 2011 Rules, subject to verification of their antecedents in light of Article 25 of the Constitution. Additionally, he also requested that only Islamabad domicile holders be eligible for appointments to posts of officers, officials, and staff at the Islamabad High Court under its rules. Copyright Business Recorder, 2026

Read full story on Business Recorder