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PTCL v. Iqbal Nasir etc.

PLJ 2011 SC 614 · Peshawar High Court

This case involved a group of appeals before the Supreme Court of Pakistan concerning employees of Pakistan Telecommunication Company Limited (PTCL) whose services were terminated, or who were denied benefits under a Voluntary Separation Scheme (VSS) the company had introduced. Many of these employees had approached various High Courts (Sindh, Peshawar, Lahore) using constitutional petitions, and those courts had ruled in favor of the employees, ordering reinstatement or other relief.

PTCL challenged these High Court rulings before the Supreme Court, arguing that writ jurisdiction should not apply to it in such employment disputes.

The Supreme Court examined whether PTCL, since partly privatized (with the government still holding a majority 62% share), remained a "person" performing functions connected with government affairs, making it subject to High Courts' constitutional jurisdiction under Article 199. It held that since the government still owned majority shares, PTCL remained amenable to such jurisdiction. However, since PTCL had no statutory service rules, the ordinary "master and servant" principle applied, meaning contract employees had no vested legal right to reinstatement or regularization after their contracts ended. Employees whose contracts expired could not invoke constitutional jurisdiction to compel continued employment, though as "workmen" they were entitled to one month's notice or salary instead.

The Supreme Court therefore set aside the High Court judgments favoring the employees and allowed PTCL's appeals, clarifying the limits of job security for cont

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