5575/2016 Const. P. Syed Sajjad Ali Shah (Petitioner) V/S Chief Sect: and Ors (Respondent)
Sindh High Court
Bench: Hon'ble Mr. Justice Muhammad Karim Khan Agha, Hon'ble Mr. Justice Adnan-ul-Karim Memon(Author)
Order Date: 18-APR-25
The consistent stance of the Supreme Court is that contractual employees possess no inherent right to regularization. Regularization can only be considered based on fitness, suitability, and applicable departmental laws and rules. Cases like Khushal Khan Khattak University v. Jabran Ali Khan (2021 SCMR 977), Government of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa v. Raheel Ali Gohar (2020 SCMR 2068), and others reiterate that regularization requires a legal and statutory basis. Contractual employees serve at the pleasure of their master and cannot seek reinstatement for wrongful termination, only compensation through a competent court. Chairman NADRA v. Muhammad Ali Shah (2017 SCMR 1979) clarifies that contractual employees are governed by their contract terms until regularized and generally cannot invoke the High Court's constitutional jurisdiction. The Supreme Court has repeatedly held that temporary, contract, or project employees lack a vested right to regularization unless their initial appointment followed regular recruitment rules against sanctioned vacant posts, which is not the case here. Vice-Chancellor, Bacha Khan University v. Tanveer Ahmad (2022 PLC (C.S.) 85), Pakistan Telecommunication Company Ltd. v. Muhammad Samiullah (2021 SCMR 998), Government of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa v. Sher Aman (2022 SCMR 406), and Deputy Director Finance and Administration FATA v. Dr. Lal Marjan (2022 SCMR 566) all decisions confirm that regularization is not a vested right but requires a statutory basis, which is absent in this instance. A contractual employee seeking regularization must demonstrate this statutory basis, as relief cannot be granted solely on the principle of "similarly placed persons."Full judgment text for this case is not yet available on Pakistan Law Reports. Check the official Sindh High Court case law portal for the complete order.
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