What happens if probation period ends?
PLJ 2007 SC 910 · Peshawar High Court
This case was a service law dispute about what happens to a government employee's probation status when various administrative actions occur during that period.
Dr. Waqar-ur-Rehman Qureshi was appointed as a Lecturer and later provisionally appointed as Assistant Professor at Ayub Medical College, Abbottabad, subject to a two-year probation period. Under the applicable rules, if no confirmation letter was issued after two years, the probation would automatically be considered extended for one more year, after which he would become a regular employee. While still within this probation period, he was granted unpaid leave to work abroad in Saudi Arabia through the Overseas Employment Corporation, with the understanding that he would complete his remaining probation upon return. However, before his leave ended, the Chief Executive of the institution repatriated him back to his parent department without any hearing.
The Peshawar High Court ruled in his favor, and the Supreme Court upheld that decision, refusing the institution's request for leave to appeal. The Court held that probation periods can be suspended, postponed, or extended, and that the employee's repatriation was done unilaterally without giving him any opportunity to be heard, violating principles of natural justice and the service rules governing medical institutions.
This case matters because it confirms that employers cannot unilaterally terminate or alter an employee's service status during probation without following proper procedure and affording a fair hearing, reinforcing protections for employees even during probationary periods.
یہ مقدمہ سروس لاء سے متعلق ایک تنازع تھا جس میں یہ سوال زیرِ بحث تھا کہ پروبیشن کے دوران جب مختلف انتظامی اقدامات کیے جائیں تو سرکاری ملازم کی پروبیشن حیثیت پر ان کا کیا اثر مرتب ہوتا ہے۔
ڈاکٹر وقار الرحمن قریشی کو لیکچرر مقرر کیا گیا تھا اور بعد ازاں ایوب میڈیکل کالج، ایبٹ آباد میں اسسٹنٹ پروفیسر کے عہدے پر عارضی طور پر تعینات کیا گیا، جو کہ دو سالہ پروبیشن کی شرط کے ساتھ مشروط تھی۔ لاگو قواعد کے مطابق اگر دو سال کے بعد تصدیقی خط جاری نہ کیا جاتا تو پروبیشن خود بخود مزید ایک سال کے لیے توسیع شدہ تصور کی جاتی، جس کے بعد وہ مستقل ملازم بن جاتے۔ اسی پروبیشن کی مدت کے دوران انہیں اوورسیز ایمپلائمنٹ کارپوریشن کے ذریعے سعودی عرب میں کام کرنے کے لیے بلا تنخواہ رخصت دی گئی، اس سمجھوتے کے ساتھ کہ وہ واپسی پر اپنی باقی ماندہ پروبیشن مکمل کریں گے۔ تاہم ان ک