Zubair Qureshi
The Islamabad High Court (IHC) on Tuesday declared null and void appointment of Special Assistant to the Prime Minister for CDA Affairs Ali Nawaz Awan as the Chairman of the Local Government Commission.
Justice Mohsin Akhtar Kayani of the IHC set aside Nawaz’s appointment as chairman of the Commission while hearing a petition filed by Islamabad Mayor Sheikh Ansar Aziz.
The high court ruled that Nawaz’s appointment as chairman of the commission was against the code of conduct and directed relevant authorities to draft rules for appointment of the chairman of the commission within six months. A tug of war between the local government commission and the Islamabad mayor over power and authority has been going on over the past few months after the mayor was suspended by the interior ministry but later restored by the court.Ali Nawaz Awan the then chairman of the commission had recommended suspension of the Islamabad Mayor for a period of 90 days after a reference was filed against him.
According to the reference filed against Ansar Aziz — who is affiliated with opposition party PML-N —he was abusing his powers, using staff for personal use, and operating official vehicles that were reportedly beyond his entitlement.
The reference was filed by Humayun Akhtar, a member of the Capital Development Authority (CDA) and the acting Chief Metropolitan Officer (CMO).
Sheikh Ansar had challenged his suspension successfully as last month the IHC set aside the Interior Ministry’s orders for his suspension for 90 days and directed him to resume his duty.
