LAHORE – The Lahore High Court (LHC) on Wednesday rebuked Ministry of Religious Affairs Secretary Chaudhary Azam Samma for defying court orders and not appearing despite repeated notices.
The court had summoned him in connection with a petition challenging changes in an approved list of volunteers (Khadim-e-Haj) for Saudi Arabia made by official of the ministry.
Samma appeared before the court on Wednesday and expressed his inability to implement the court order stating that the volunteers had been sent to Saudi Arabia and now it was impossible for him to call them back. However, he assured the court that the 10 proposed volunteers earlier dropped by the ministry would be sent to Saudi Arabia next year.
Justice Khalid Mahmoood Khan rejected his statement and allowed him half an hour to reconsider his statement that whether he was ready to obey the court order or not.
The court observed that the officers of the ministry were playing a game of hide and seek with the court. However, the court would not tolerate if its orders would be defied repeatedly.
After the time, the court resumed hearing and the secretary informed the court that the ministry was ready to send another batch of volunteers consisting of the dropped ones.
The court recorded his statement and asked the affected people to approach the ministry for completing their documentary process required to go Saudi Arabia as volunteers. The court will resume hearing on October 15.
A traffic warden Ali Adnan had filed the petition and stated that the ministry on April 27 wrote a letter to the Punjab inspector general of police seeking a list of at least 15 police officials who had not performed Haj duty earlier.
He said the police department after holding balloting selected 15 police official including him and sent the list to the ministry. He said the ministry approved the list and duly informed the police department through a letter on May 22.
However, the petitioner said the ministry later for the reasons best known to it without any lawful justification dropped the names of 10 selected officials including him and included names of its own choice.
The petitioner prayed that the impugned act of the ministry should be set aside being illegal and be ordered to send the names of previously selected officials for performance of duties as volunteers.
Also, the LHC chief justice on Wednesday restrained National College of Arts (NCA) Acting Principal Dr Sajjad Kausar from going abroad till final decision of a petition seeking directions of registration of blasphemy cases against the NCA officials for publishing some sacrilegious images in annual magazine of the institute.
As the proceedings started on Wednesday, counsel for petitioner informed the court that Dr Sajjad Kausur would retire on October 12 (Friday), and he might flee from the country. He requested the court to bar the accused from going abroad.
The court accepted his request and adjourned hearing until October 23.