In an FCC court ruling, the Federal Constitutional Court (FCC), Pakistan’s top constitutional bench for such disputes, held that a trivial or less harmful offence should not permanently shut someone out of government service. A two-member bench led by Chief Justice Amin-ud-Din Khan, with a four-page judgement authored by Justice Ali Baqar Najafi, upheld a Peshawar High Court order directing the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa government to consider candidate Hanifullah for appointment as a police constable.
The Dir Lower constable dispute
The case grew out of FIR No.269, registered on 22 April 2018 at Police Station Talash in District Dir Lower under Sections 285 and 286 of the Pakistan Penal Code (PPC)—provisions that deal with negligent conduct involving fire, combustible matter or explosive substances. On a confessional statement, Hanifullah was sentenced only to a Rs500 fine. The court described that outcome as a minor penalty that does not fall in the category of a heinous crime or an offence of moral turpitude, and noted that he had not concealed the conviction.
The Peshawar High Court, in an order dated 15 March 2023, directed the KP police to consider him for the constable post. A KP police officer appealed that order. The FCC court ruling rejected the idea that this record alone could create a permanent embargo on induction into the police department.
Why the FCC rejected a lifelong ban
The judgement stressed that a crime remains a crime, but decision-makers must weigh the nature of the offence, the person’s disposition toward criminal conduct, and the likelihood of further offences before imposing lasting career consequences. It observed that confessions are often made through an understanding meant to save court time and may reflect remorse, and that without being educated about the result of confessing—here linked to proceedings under Section 243 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1898—a person cannot fairly be bound to a lifelong prohibition from public employment.
“A trivial or less harmful offence cannot have a severe consequence so as to rule out the possibility of induction into a government service,” the court observed, adding that punishment must fit the crime and “cannot damage the entire life of such criminal.” The available record did not show Hanifullah to be a habitual offender. An accused who admits guilt becomes, in a sense, a friend of the court and may receive reasonable leniency, the bench said. It also pointed to constitutional protection of civil rights and to due process and fair trial under Article 10-A of the Constitution.
At the same time, the court acknowledged that police recruitment needs careful character checks. Rule 12.14 of the Police Rules, 1934, requires recruits to be of good character. It also referred to Standing Order 6/2015 of the Punjab Police and a 1 June 2018 amendment on affidavits about criminal involvement, while stressing that bare allegations in an FIR, without indictment or conviction, remain only allegations—and that motivated or enmity-driven FIRs can occur, making the investigating officer’s opinion relevant.
Timeline: what has happened so far
- 22 April 2018: FIR No.269 is registered at Police Station Talash, Dir Lower, under Sections 285 and 286 PPC against the constable candidate later named as Hanifullah.
- 1 June 2018: An amendment linked to Punjab Police Standing Order 6/2015 requires candidates to submit affidavits declaring they are not involved in criminal cases when applying.
- 15 March 2023: The Peshawar High Court orders the KP police to consider Hanifullah for the constable post; that order is later upheld in the FCC court ruling after a KP police appeal.
Aasan alfaaz mein
Federal Constitutional Court ne kaha hai ke chhota ya halka jurm kisi ko hamesha ke liye sarkari naukri se nahi rok sakta. Dir Lower ke umeedwar Hanifullah par Rs500 ka fine tha, phir bhi usay police constable ke liye consider kiya ja sakta hai. Court ka matlab yeh hai ke saza jurm ke hisab se honi chahiye, umar bhar ki pabandi nahi. Agar aapke paas bhi koi chhota fine ho, to har conviction automatic disqualification nahi samjhi jani chahiye—lekin police character check ab bhi zaroori hai.
