Acting governor be given full access to Governor's House: SHC
In a constitutional petition, Syed Awais Qadir Shah, who is also the Speaker of the Sindh Assembly, pleaded that despite Governor Sindh Kamran Tessori being abroad, and as per Article 104 of the Constitution, which mandates the Speaker to perform the Governor's functions, he was being denied access to the Governor House and its associated offices.
The petitioner's counsels, Barrister Azain Memon and Zubair Ali Butt, argued that the Principal Secretary had repeatedly refused the petitioner and his staff access to the Governor House, despite formal requests; this denial hindered the Acting Governor's ability to perform his official duties.
The court was informed that the denial of access was not an isolated incident but had occurred multiple times, including on the day of the hearing. The petitioner sought immediate and unobstructed access to the Governor House and its resources to discharge his duties as Acting Governor.
The Advocate General Sindh, Jawad Dero, stated that the Acting Governor was legally entitled to use the Governor House for official business. The court, after interpreting Article 104, concluded that the petitioner could not be denied access to the Governor House to carry out his official duties.
The court directed the Principal Secretary to provide immediate access to the Acting Governor to all rooms, offices, and chambers in the Governor House, except the residential portion, to enable him to perform his official duties.
Copyright Business Recorder, 2025
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