PTV chairman, six directors, DRAP chief shown the door
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan Television chairman Arshad Khan, six directors of the PTV board and the chief executive officer (CEO) of the Drug Regulatory Authority of Pakistan (DRAP) were sacked by the Islamabad High Court (IHC) on Thursday.
After the court order, the ministry of information and broadcasting issued a notification to de-seat Arshad Khan. As per the notification, Information Secretary Akbar Durrani has been given the charge to look after the PTV board till the appointment of a regular chairman.
An IHC bench comprising Justice Mohsin Akhtar Kayani passed a judgement on the appointments of the PTV chairman and board members while another bench comprising Justice Miangul Hassan Aurangzeb dealt with the DRAP CEO’s appointment case.
Justice Kayani decided petitions related to the appointment of PTV chairman Arshad Khan and independent members of PTV board, Rashid Ali Khan, Zohair Khaliq, Ali Bokhari, Mian Yousaf Salahuddin, Farmanullah Jan and Professor Ijazul Ahsan.
Justice Kayani declared the appointment of Arshad Khan as PTV chairman and independent members of the board illegal. Besides, the court observed that Arshad Khan, Rashid Khan, Zohair Khaliq and Farmanullah Jan might not be considered for the same positions again.
However, the judge through a short order validated appointments of Managing Director of the PTV Amir Manzoor, Katrina Hussain as chief of news and current affairs and Khawar Azhar as head of content and marketing.
The lawyers representing the petitioners said that the detailed judgement would explain the legality of their appointments.
The petitioners had requested the court to declare the appointment of Arshad Khan and the PTV board members illegal and in violation of Companies Act 2017 and the Rules of 2013. The petitioners also requested the court to direct the respondents to commence the process of appointment of chairman and director(s) of the PTV board in accordance with the law i.e. Public Sector Companies (Corporate Governance) Rules, 2013.
Newspaper: Dawn
Related links: Nation, The News, Business Recorder
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