PML-N leader Hanif Abbasi on Thursday resigned as special assistant to the prime minister (SAPM) after the Islamabad High Court (IHC) had stopped him “temporarily” from performing his duties.
In a letter dated June 1, a copy of which is available with Dawn.com, addressed to Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, Abbasi said that he would be “unable to perform at present” and requested the premier to accept his resignation while thanking him for the opportunity.
On Thursday, the Cabinet Division issued a notification stating that the PM had accepted the resignation under Schedule V-A of the Rules of Business, 1973, and removed Abbasi from the post with immediate effect.
The PML-N leader was notified as a SAPM, with the status of federal minister, on April 27. However, he had not been assigned a portfolio.
The development today comes after IHC Chief Justice Athar Minallah barred Abbasi from working as SAPM last month. The directives were issued while hearing a petition filed by former interior minister and Awami Muslim League (AML) chief Sheikh Rashid, who had challenged Abbasi’s appointment as SAPM on the grounds of his 2018 conviction in the ephedrine case.
During the hearing on May 17, the court observed that a person who has been convicted could not hold public office.
Abbasi’s lawyer, Ahsan Bhoon had argued that the office of the SAPM was not like other public offices. However, Justice Minallah had ruled that the SAPM’s job was to advise the prime minister and he could do so without a notification as well.
Earlier, the court had also directed PM Shehbaz to reconsider the PML-N leader’s appointment.
