The Supreme Court on Monday withdrew its orders to Sindh Chief Minister Murad Ali Shah, issued earlier in the day, to dismiss Karachi administrator Murtaza Wahab after he categorically apologized.
According to media reports, a two-member bench comprising Chief Justice Gulzar Ahmed and Justice Qazi Mohammad Amin had ordered for Wahab’s removal after a discussion with him during which he disturbed the decorum of the court. The incident occurred in a hearing pertaining to matters such as illegal construction and encroachment.
Supreme Court Chief Justice Gulzar Ahmed said that the administrator was not authorized to hold the position as he was “acting like a politician” rather than an administrator.
The apex court added that the post must be kept apolitical and directed Wahab to fulfill his responsibilities while not being pressured by “political relationships”.
Speaking to media, Murtaza Wahab stated that he had issued an apology to the apex court and had spoken in court with ‘great respect’.
He added that the courts must pay heed to what the parties involved wanted to say before giving a verdict.
The court was, at the time, also hearing, apart from the aforementioned matters, various important issues such as conversion of residential properties into commercial, and private hospitals running health facilities on amenity plots.
Meanwhile, a journalist covering the hearing stated on Twitter that the military should do what the constitution assigned it and should return the encroached land to Karachi Municipal Corporation. She quoted the judge as saying that they [military] were embarrassing their institution.
