Dr Hafeez Sheikh appointment challenged
Shares
PESHAWAR – The Peshawar High Court directed the federal government on Wednesday to respond to a petition, which challenged the appointment of Dr Abdul Hafeez Shaikh as Advisor on Finance for violating different clauses of the Constitution.
A PHC bench comprising Chief Justice Waqar Ahmad Seth and Justice Mussarat Hilali sought the government’s written response by May 21 on a petition filed by freelance journalist Shahid Orakzai.
The petitioner requested the court to declare the appointment of Dr Shaikh as unconstitutional and announce that it contravenes the laid-down procedure for discussion on the federal budget.
He also pleaded the court to declare that Dr Shaikh wasn’t authorised to act as the federal finance minister and that he can neither attend the cabinet’s meetings nor can he sign any foreign agreement on behalf of Pakistan, Dawn News reported.
The petitioner held Dr Shaikh and federal government through the law secretary as respondents and inquired if any adviser could function as the federal finance minister under Article 93 of the Constitution.
He argued that the finance minister instead of an adviser to the prime minister was empowered to present the imminent federal budget in the National Assembly, which is scheduled to be announced in the next few weeks.
The petitioner said a minister was bound by the Constitution to take oath from the president of Pakistan but Dr Shaikh didn’t take any such oath.
The petitioner admitted that as an adviser, Dr Shaikh was permitted by Clause 2 of Article 93 of the Constitution to participate in parliamentary proceedings, but he couldn’t present the budget in the National Assembly.
He pleaded that Article 160 of the Constitution clearly declared that the National Finance Commission comprised the federal finance minister and other members, while Article 88(2) of the Constitution stated that the finance committees of the National Assembly and Senate consisted of finance minister and other members.
Orakzai said the constitutional provisions had declared several functions of the federal finance minister that an adviser couldn’t perform.
Dr Abdul Hafeez Sheikh was appointed as the Adviser on Finance after Asad Umar stepped down from the post last month. Umar is all set to lead the National Assembly’s Standing Committee on Finance now.
