SUPERINTENDENT OF POLICE, HEADQUARTERS, LAHORE vs IJAZ ASLAM Service matters

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SUPERINTENDENT OF POLICE, HEADQUARTERS, LAHORE VS IJAZ ASLAM Service matters---Punishment, award of---Institutional autonomy---Concept of institutional autonomy in matters relating to award of punishment and limited circumstances in which courts/tribunals can interfere in the same. Citation Name: 2024 PLC(CS) 1310 SUPREME-COURTBookmark this Case SUPERINTENDENT OF POLICE, HEADQUARTERS, LAHORE VS IJAZ ASLAM When the basic order is without lawful authority, then the entire superstructure raised thereon falls to the ground automatically. Citation Name: 2024 PLC(CS) 1310 SUPREME-COURTBookmark this Case SUPERINTENDENT OF POLICE, HEADQUARTERS, LAHORE VS IJAZ ASLAM S. 5---Service Tribunal---Relief, grant of---Parameters---Grounds of leniency and compassion---No court has the jurisdiction to grant arbitrary relief without the support of any power granted by the Constitution or the law---Any relief granted on the touchstone of subjective standards of leniency and compassion, rather than the law, cannot be sustained---Any such subjective decision disregards the importance of institutional autonomy; which rests on well-thought out values, ethos, policies and internal disciple of the institution. Citation Name: 2024 PLC(CS) 1310 SUPREME-COURTBookmark this Case SUPERINTENDENT OF POLICE, HEADQUARTERS, LAHORE VS IJAZ ASLAM art. 25---Civil service---Discrimination---Relief sought on plea of discrimination---Scope---article 25 of the Constitution has no application to a claim based upon other unlawful acts and illegalities---It only comes into operation when some persons are granted a benefit in accordance with law but others, similarly placed and in similar circumstances are denied that benefit---But where a person gains, or is granted, a benefit illegally, other persons cannot plead, nor can the courts accept such a plea, that the same benefit must be allowed to them also in violation of law. Citation Name: 2024 PLC(CS) 1310 SUPREME-COURTBookmark this Case SUPERINTENDENT OF POLICE, HEADQUARTERS, LAHORE VS IJAZ ASLAM R. 4(1)(b)(iv)---Driver constables in police department---Appointments made on basis of fake and bogus driving licenses---Dismissal from service---"Doctrine of unclean hands"---Scope and applicability---Admittedly the respondents were dismissed from service based on an established charge of misconduct after a proper regular departmental inquiry was conducted by the competent authority---Findings in the inquiry report were not only accepted by the competent authority but had also been affirmed by the appellate authority of the same department---In the instant case, the major penalty of dismissal from service was imposed by the competent authority in accordance with law and the relevant rules---Fact that the respondents procured their appointment based on bogus and fake driving licenses could not be condoned---Reasoning given in the impugned judgment justifying their reinstatement on the ground that the respondents worked for 14 years and had subsequently obtained new licenses was not sufficient and did not wash away their act of submitting fake and bogus licenses and thus managing their appointments fraudulently---Once the appointment was sought on the basis of bogus licenses, such appointment could not be legitimized---This was based on the principle referred to as the "doctrine of unclean hands."---This legal doctrine holds that a person who has acted unethically, deceitfully, or with dishonesty should not be entitled to the benefits derived from such actions---When applied to employment, particularly in sensitive roles like the police service, this principle asserts that someone who gains their position through fraudulent means-such as by falsifying documents-cannot be trusted to uphold the integrity and responsibilities of that position---Furthermore, discovering the fraud, even several years after the fact, could still be ground for disciplinary action because the initial appointment was obtained illegitimately---The rationale was that trust and integrity are foundational to public service roles, and a breach of this nature undermined the trust necessary for the role and could potentially have legal and institutional consequences---Said principle maintains that the integrity of the institution and the trust placed in its officials are paramount, and therefore, any breach, regardless of when discovered, must be addressed decisively---Respondents knew that they had submitted fake and bogus licenses during the recruitment process---Thus, the Tribunal had failed to take into consideration the fact that the basic qualification/eligibility to the post of driver constable was a genuine license which the respondents did not meet---In the absence of the same, the Tribunal acted in an arbitrary and whimsical manner overlooking the specific facts and circumstances by granting relief to the respondents in violation of the law---Petition was converted into an appeal and allowed; the impugned judgment was set aside and the dismissal orders of the respondents passed by the department were upheld.

SUPERINTENDENT OF POLICE, HEADQUARTERS, LAHORE vs IJAZ ASLAM Service matters — 2024 PLC(CS) 1310 SUPREME-COURT

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