SC declares daughter eligible for job in place of father

The Supreme Court has issued a written decision in the case of depriving the daughter of a job after the death of a government employee, reported 24NewsHD TV channel on Sunday. 

Justice Mansoor Ali Shah issued a 9-page written decision. The Supreme Court declared the daughter eligible for the job in place of the father. 

The court wrote that the decision to dismiss the daughter of a government employee from the job is declared null and void. The court ordered the concerned department should restore the applicant's appointment with all previous privileges. 

Court wrote that not giving jobs to married daughters on the father's quota is discriminatory. A woman's identity, legal rights, and autonomy do not end after marriage, the Supreme Court wrote.

The text of the verdict said that under the KP Civil Servants Rules, all children of a deceased or retired government servant on medical grounds are eligible for employment. 

Changing the rules through an explanatory letter by a section officer is illegal, and such executive instructions cannot be above the law. 

Excluding daughters from the quota of a deceased servant on the basis of marriage is discriminatory, and this practice is a violation of Articles 25, 27, and 14 of the Constitution. 

Marriage does not end a woman's legal status, her identity, or her autonomy. These rights of a woman cannot be dependent on marriage. 

A woman's financial autonomy is a fundamental right, and the Constitution gives individual rights to every citizen instead of basing them on marital units or social roles, and even in Islam, a woman has full control over her property, income, and financial affairs.

Pakistan has ratified the International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women. Under this convention, discrimination in employment on the basis of marriage is prohibited.

Under the feminist legal theory, women's economic and legal autonomy should be recognised.

It may be mentioned here that the petitioner, Zahida Parveen, was recruited on March 17, 2023, on the quota of a deceased government employee.

The petitioner was employed as a primary teacher in Government Girls Primary School in District Karak.

The appointment was made under Rule 10(4) of the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Civil Servants Rules, 1989.

Two months later, on May 15, 2023, the District Education Officer withdrew the order of appointment without a show cause notice.

The explanatory letter stated that a married daughter is not entitled to employment on the quota of a deceased government employee.

The petitioner filed a departmental appeal against this decision.After no response was received within the prescribed period, the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Service Tribunal Peshawar was approached.

The petitioner’s appeal was dismissed on June 3, 2024. The petitioner filed an appeal against this decision in the Supreme Court.