Pakistan Engineering Council (PEC) has urged the Islamabad High Court (IHC) to direct national flag carrier to fill engineering slots by registered engineers instead of promoting non-professionals to the posts.
The PEC submitted before a single member bench of the IHC, Justice Babar Sattar, which was hearing a plea challenging non-engineering staff employment at engineering slots in Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) on Thursday,
The bench referred the case to Chief Justice Athar Minallah for directives to club the plea with the matter where a number of trainee engineers of PIA have urged the court to eliminate discrimination in their promotion, due since 2009.
Advocate Umer Ijaz has filed the petition on behalf of Eng Dr Mian Khuram Ahsan making federation of Pakistan through Secretary Ministry of Aviation, Pakistan International Airlines Corporation (PIAC) through its Chief Executive Officer and Pakistan Engineering Council (PEC) through its Registrar as respondents in the matter.
After hearing preliminary arguments of Advocate Umer Gilani in the matter, the single-member bench of the Justice Babar Sattar has sought response of all the respondents when it was informed that the national flag carrier has appointed such persons whose only educational qualification was just Matric and who, in many cases started out as “helpers” and “cleaners and eventually rose through the ranks through organisational politics.
Responding to notice of the IHC on Thursday, the PEC submitted a reply and concurred with the petitioner’s plea. The PEC counsel Barrister Raheel Ahmed sought the bench directives to people at the helm of affairs of the PIA to observe PEC Act in letter and spirit in filling slots of engineers to perform engineering work instead of promoting non-engineers for engineering work.
Advocate Raheel Ahmed further said that earlier the IHC has decided in a matter over Capital Development Authority employees and directed to the effect of restraining employers not to consider diploma holders and those who possess B Tech Hons degree for promotion against posts which require its incumbents to carry out professional engineering work. Citing the IHC orders he said the court has said in its order, “The CDA is directed not to consider diploma holders/B Tech Hons for promotion against the post specified for professional engineers”.
However, the PIA counsel Muhammad Umer Virdak requested the bench to grant more time to submit reply in the matter with a plea that a matter of the same nature is pending before another court of the IHC. He also requested the court to club the petition in hand with the matter of trainee engineers of the PIA promotion case.
Accepting the plea of the PIA counsel on Thursday Justice Babar Sattar sent the matter to the IHC’s Chief Justice Athar Minallah to consolidate both the cases. Later, hearing adjourned sine die.
