Recruitment to top posts in PTV challenged.

ISLAMABAD -- The Islamabad High Court (IHC) on Wednesday admitted for regular hearing a petition challenging the recruitment to top positions of news, current affairs, marketing and digital media in the state-run Pakistan Television (PTV).

Justice Mohsin Akhtar Kayani issued notices to the PTV management and recently appointed chief news and current affairs Quatrina Hosain, chief human resource officer Mohammed Tahir Mushtaq, chief technology officer Nasir A. Naqvi, chief finance officer Usman Bajwa, chief digital officer Atif Zareef and head of marketing and content Khawar Azhar.

Petitioner Pervez Bhatti, general secretary of the PTV Employees Union, has challenged the appointments on the grounds that they had been made without adhering to the due process of law.

According to the petition, these appointments were never advertised; instead an advertisement for short-listing of recruitment was published in daily Pakistan Observer. Subsequently, a private head hunting firm was hired for making these top appointments.

The petitioner's counsel, Ali Nawaz Kharal, adopted before the court that since the PTV was a public sector company and a significant state enterprise, it was imperative...