The Federal Constitutional Court has issued an important ruling regarding the abolition of the deceased quota system, upholding appointments made before the policy was struck down.
The court declared the decision of the Sindh High Court as valid and maintained the appointments of all ten petitioners. It also dismissed the appeals filed by the Government of Sindh in the case.
The verdict was announced by Justice Aamer Farooq while hearing the deceased quota case against the Sindh government.
According to the court, the Sindh government had argued that the deceased quota system had already been abolished by the Supreme Court of Pakistan in the Muhammad Jalal case.
However, the constitutional court ruled that the rights of eligible heirs had already been created before the Supreme Court’s judgment. It stated that the legal right of the family members arises immediately upon the death of a government employee, while the submission of an application or issuance of an appointment letter is merely an administrative process.
The judgment further stated that heirs acquire their legal entitlement at the time of death and that Supreme Court decisions do not apply retrospectively.
The court also observed that such older cases should be treated as past and settled matters. It maintained that the appointment orders issued by the Sindh High Court’s Larkana Circuit Bench under the deceased quota were valid and therefore should remain in force.