Islamabad’s High Court has directed the federal government to halt the allocation of residences to senior civil servants. Justice Babar Sattar issued an 11-page written directive in response to the case involving the allocation of housing to federal government senior civil servants of grades 21 and 22 without adhering to a merit list. The court’s order prevents any further allotments by the federal government until the next hearing.
The court has summoned the secretaries of both the Ministry of Housing and the Ministry of Law to appear before the Islamabad High Court on September 1st. During the hearing, concerns were raised that allocations were made to favored individuals holding significant positions within the federal government, disregarding the established merit list. The court has requested a report from the federal government clarifying the rules under which these allotments were conducted.
As stated in the written order, the provided report did not include all the requested information, leading the court to consider it an attempt to deceive. Notably, the court did not receive an affidavit from the secretary of the Ministry of Housing.
The court’s order further mentioned that it was informed about the recent appointment of a new Secretary of Housing, who is currently unwell. The court expects the Secretary of Housing to personally attend the next hearing to address the court’s inquiries. The Secretary of Housing is also required to resubmit the report and affidavit with complete and accurate information, as per the court’s instructions.