Zubair Qureshi
The Islamabad High Court (IHC) on Thursday allowed Mayor of Islamabad Sheikh Ansar Aziz to resume his duties as Mayor of Islamabad and set aside the federal government’s earlier order of his suspension.
The federal cabinet on May 17, Sunday, had approved the Interior Ministry’s notification to suspend Aziz over charges of alleged corruption for a period of 90 days.
The decision according to an official handout was taken to ensure transparency of an inquiry of alleged corruption pending against the mayor. Earlier in February this year, a local government commission headed by the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) MNA Ali Nawaz Awan had recommended suspension of the Mayor accusing he was involved in monetary corruption. Awan is also the Special Assistant to Prime Minister Imran Khan on CDA Affairs.
The Islamabad High Court however, had barred the government from taking any adverse move against the Mayor who had sought the court’s help against the ‘politics of vengeance’ by the PTI government.
Despite that restraining order, the federal government suspended Mayor of Islamabad for a period of 90 days and until the conclusion of the inquiry pending against him.
Aziz was suspended “with immediate effect for a period of ninety (90) days for fair conduct of inquiry under section 96, sub-section (1) of Islamabad Capital Territory Local Government Act, 2015 (X of 2015)”, read the notification issued by the Interior Ministry.
The following day, Monday, Sheikh Ansar Aziz through his lawyer Qazi Adil Aziz moved a petition in the IHC, seeking the cancellation of the suspension order and pleaded with the government to allow him to resume office until the court concluded the mat-
ter.
Justice Mohsin Akhtar Kayani of the IHC while allowing the Mayor to continue as head of the Metropolitan Corporation of Islamabad adjourned the case till next date in office.
In his petition, Sheikh Ansar Aziz had nominated the federal government, Ministry of Interior and the Local Government Commission (LGC) while requesting the court to direct the said institutions to “work within the orbit of the law”.
He asked the court to direct the stakeholders to “work within the orbit of law”.
