Sher Zaman Ex-Assistant Excise and Taxation Officer (B-16) V Board of Revenue BALOCHISTAN (Excise and Taxation Branch) through Member Board of Revenue-II/Secretary Excise and another,
PLC (C.S) 2020 969 · Balochistan High Court
This case concerns Sher Zaman, a retired Assistant Excise and Taxation Officer in Balochistan, whose pension was withheld by the Board of Revenue because of a pending NAB (National Accountability Bureau) reference against him. He challenged this before the Balochistan High Court, arguing that denying him pensionary benefits without any legal basis was unjust.
The court ruled in his favor. It held that pension and gratuity are not discretionary favors or bounties but benefits an employee earns through years of honest, continuous service. Importantly, there was no provision in the Pension Rules allowing authorities to withhold pension simply because departmental or criminal proceedings were pending. The court also noted that the right to receive pension is protected as a property right under Article 9 of the Constitution, meaning no one can be deprived of it except through lawful authority. Since the petitioner had already been acquitted by a competent court, there was no justification for continuing to withhold his pension.
The judgment drew on precedent, including a Supreme Court ruling, emphasizing that people are presumed innocent until proven guilty and should not be punished administratively for accusations that may never result in conviction. It also highlighted the broader problem of retired government employees suffering hardship due to bureaucratic delays in pension processing.
The court allowed the petition and directed the authorities to release the petitioner's pensionary benefits, reinforcing that pension rights deserve strong legal protection and cannot be arbitrarily suspended.
یہ مقدمہ شیر زمان سے متعلق ہے، جو بلوچستان میں ایکسائز اینڈ ٹیکسیشن کے ریٹائرڈ اسسٹنٹ آفیسر تھے، اور جن کی پنشن بورڈ آف ریونیو نے ان کے خلاف نیب (نیشنل اکاؤنٹیبلٹی بیورو) میں زیرِ التوا ریفرنس کی بنا پر روک رکھی تھی۔ انہوں نے اس اقدام کو بلوچستان ہائی کورٹ میں چیلنج کیا اور موقف اختیار کیا کہ بغیر کسی قانونی جواز کے انہیں پنشن کے فوائد سے محروم رکھنا ناانصافی ہے۔
عدالت نے ان کے حق میں فیصلہ دیا۔ عدالت نے قرار دیا کہ پنشن اور گریجویٹی کوئی صوابدیدی نوازش یا عطیہ نہیں بلکہ وہ فوائد ہیں جو ایک ملازم برسوں کی دیانتدارانہ اور مسلسل خدمت کے عوض حاصل کرتا ہے۔ اہم بات یہ ہے کہ پنشن رولز میں ایسی کوئی شق موجود نہیں جو حکام کو محض محکمانہ یا فوجداری کارروائی زیرِ التوا ہونے کی بنیاد پر پنشن روکنے کا اختیار دیتی ہو۔ عدالت نے یہ بھی نشاندہی کی کہ