The Federal Constitutional Court of Pakistan has issued a significant ruling on the powers of caretaker governments and recruitments made during their tenure, declaring certain appointments made during the caretaker period unlawful.
However, the Court upheld the constitutionality of a Khyber Pakhtunkhwa law concerning the dismissal of employees and dismissed the appeals filed by affected workers. A three-member bench headed by Justice Hassan Azhar Rizvi issued the written judgment, holding that the primary role of a caretaker government is limited to carrying out day-to-day administrative affairs and that it cannot make decisions of a permanent or long-term nature.
According to the judgment, caretaker governments do not enjoy powers equivalent to those of elected governments. The Court observed that significant actions taken by caretaker administrations, particularly appointments and policy decisions, are subject to prior approval by the Election Commission of Pakistan.
The judgment further stated that public-sector recruitments constitute permanent actions in nature. Therefore, appointments made by the caretaker government between January 2023 and February 2024 fall outside the legal framework and are liable to be treated as unlawful.
The Court also held that the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Assembly, by virtue of the constitutional mandate obtained through elections, possesses the authority to enact legislation. It observed that a law cannot be declared inconsistent with fundamental rights merely because it adversely affects a limited number of individuals.
Accordingly, the Court ruled that the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Employees Dismissal Act, 2025, is not repugnant to the Constitution and dismissed the appeals filed by the terminated employees.
The case arose after recruitments of Grade-IV employees were made during the caretaker government’s tenure.