Pesco ex-CEO files contempt plea over his replacement.

PESHAWAR -- The recently-removed chief executive officer of Peshawar Electric Supply Company (Pesco), Gul Nabi Syed, on Saturday filed a contempt petition in the Peshawar High Court seeking proceedings against the federal secretary energy and three other officials for replacing him despite its stay order.

The petitioner stated that on Jan 12 a bench of the high court had sought comments from the secretary and director general of the ministry for energy (power division) in a petition filed by him and had ordered them to maintain status quo in the matter.

However, he stated that the chief engineer of Islamabad Electric Company (Iesco), Arif Mehmood Sadozai, managed issuance of a notification the same day by the government and got himself posted as CEO Pesco.

The petitioner in his main petition had claimed that the federal government had moved a summary for installing the chief engineer of Iesco, Arif Mehmood Sadozai, belonging to Dera Ismail Khan, as Pesco's CEO on political grounds.

He had requested the court to declare the move of the government to replace him as illegal.

Requests PHC to initiate proceedings against federal secretary, others

A two-member bench consisting of Justice Musarrat Hilali and Justice Abdul Shakoor had fixed Jan 26 for the next hearing into the petition and directed the energy ministry (power division) to maintain status quo on the matter until then.

However, the same day the energy ministry issued a notification assigning Mr Sadozai to look after the charge of the Pesco chief executive officer as a stop-gap arrangement purely on temporary basis with immediate effect and until further orders.

The contempt petition is filed through advocate Ghulam...