• LHC Justice Faisal Zaman Khan observed that the petition was not maintainable before the court.
• The petitioner’s counsel stated that the petition was filed in public interest.
• However, the judge noted that the petition lacked requisites to be a public interest petition.

LAHORE: The Lahore High Court (LHC) on Monday dismissed a petition challenging the appointment of more than 30 political assistants to Punjab Chief Minister Parvez Elahi.

Dismissing the petition, LHC Justice Faisal Zaman Khan observed that the petition was not maintainable before the court.

The petitioner’s counsel stated that the petition was filed in public interest. However, the judge noted that the petition lacked requisites to be a public interest petition.

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A citizen, Muhammad Shahzad, filed the petition in the LHC pleading that all the political assistants had been appointed without any legal backing as there was no such post defined in any law. He submitted that the notifications issued about the appointment of the political assistants mentioned that these appointments were honorary and the appointees were not supposed to receive any remuneration, perks and privileges.

However, the petitioner said, all the political assistants had been provided with an official vehicle, office, private secretary and driver each in addition to fuel. The petitioner stated that he wrote multiple letters to the government with a request to take an immediate action against the illegal appointments of the political assistants but no action had been taken so far.

He asked the court to declare all the appointments of the political assistants to the chief minister illegal.