By Staff Reporter
ISLAMABAD: The Islamabad High Court ordered the immediate removal of the chairman of the state telecoms regulator on Tuesday, ruling his appointment illegal and tainted by procedural flaws.
The court directed retired Major General Hafeezur Rehman to relinquish the post of Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA) chairman, saying the entire recruitment process suffered from “malice in law” and lacked integrity.
The ruling by Justice Babar Sattar came in a petition filed in 2023 by digital rights activist Usama Khilji challenging the appointment of the PTA’s member for administration, a position Rehman held before becoming chairman.
In its order, the court traced the case’s history, noting it had initially admitted Khilji’s petition and barred the government from proceeding with the hiring. The government appealed for a stay, which the court partially granted, allowing the recruitment to continue but with the caveat that any appointment would be subject to the final outcome.
Subsequent hearings revealed that Rehman, a retired army major general, had been appointed as member for administration and later elevated to PTA chairman.
Justice Sattar declared the process void from the outset. “The entire process of creation of the post of member (administration), prescription of qualifications and criteria for such post and the manner in which the recruitment process was carried out lacked integrity and suffered from mala fide in law,” the judge wrote in the verdict.
“The recommendation by the selection committee of a panel of three individuals for the appointment to the post of member (administration) was not in conformance with the requirements of Rule 4(4) of the PTA Appointment Rules, which required that only one candidate could be recommended.
“The decision of the federal government to pick the candidate listed at the bottom of panel recommended by the selection committee on the basis of merit was devoid of any reasoning or objective basis and fell afoul the obligation of the federal government under Section 24A of the General Clauses Act, 1897, to act in a just, fair and reasonable manner.”
The judge extended the criticism to Rehman’s elevation to chairman, calling it equally flawed. “Similarly, the appointment of respondent No.4 as chairman PTA, after being appointed as member (administration), without any objective or transparent process and without the federal government recording any reasons as to why he was so selected from amongst the members of PTA, was illegal, irrational and unsustainable in the eyes of law.”
The court allowed the petition on those grounds, ruling that all subsequent government actions to fill the post were unsustainable and carried no legal weight. “The entire edifice of processes and decisions built on an illegal foundation must crumble upon such illegal foundation,” Sattar wrote. “As the impugned advertisement and the process of recruitment undertaken thereunder suffered from malice in law, all subsequent decisions in pursuit of such process, including the appointment of respondent No.4 as member (administration) and chairman PTA, are illegal, ultra vires the law and of no legal effect.”
In his conclusion, the judge emphasised the illegality of the appointments. “Since the entire process of Rehman’s appointment as the member (administration) and as the PTA chairman was found to suffer from malice in law being the product of an unconstitutional and illegal recruitment process, he shall cease to hold such appointments and shall immediately relinquish charge for such offices.”
To ensure continuity, the court directed the senior-most serving PTA member to assume temporary charge of the chairman’s office until the government appoints a regular incumbent.
The PTA, which regulates telecoms services and internet access in Pakistan, has faced scrutiny over its role in content blocking and surveillance policies. Rehman’s appointment in 2023 had drawn criticism from rights groups for prioritising military figures in civilian oversight roles.
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