The Supreme Court of Pakistan (SCP) has declared that the permanent addresses of candidates throughout the hiring process shall be determined using domicile certificates rather than CNICs.
The verdict was reached after the Peshawar High Court (PHC) heard appeals against several orders given between August 2018 and August 2019. District Education Officer (DEO) Charsadda, Secretary Elementary and Secondary Education Department (ESED), and Director ESED filed the complaints, respectively.
The appeals were considered by a three-judge panel chaired by Justice Sardar Tariq Masood. The appeals argued that a large number of female candidates were included on the primary school teachers’ (PST)s merit list. However, due to differences between their permanent addresses on CNICs and the location for which the positions were initially advertised, they were not chosen for the position.
For the recruitment of PSTs, the Peshawar High Court (PHC) initially decided that domiciles should be validated. The PSTs on the merit list had their addresses checked by a committee, but the shortlisted candidates were not hired. As a result, petitions for contempt of court were submitted to PHC, which mandated the appointment of the PSTs.
Supreme Court of Pakistan noted that the candidates explicitly stated that their domicile certificates were from the regions for which the jobs were intended, that they had provided rational justifications for changes in temporary addresses, and that their permanent addresses on CNICs and domicile certificates were the same.
The SCP stated that domicile certificates should be prioritized when hiring and added that if CNICs are given more weight, it will complicate the hiring process and negate the usefulness of domiciles.