Azaz Syed asks NADRA Chief about dual role; General Munir Afsar gives vague answer

Veteran journalist Azaz Syed, known for his candid and probing questions, has asked the serving Chairman of the National Database and Registration Authority (NADRA), Lieutenant General Munir Afsar a question about his appointment, termed illegal by many legal experts. 

On Tuesday, the journalist was present in Parliament House where he asked Lieutenant General Munir Afsar about his alleged illegal appointment as Chairman of NADRA during the interim government, to which the General replied, “It’s a sub judice case; contact Lahore High Court for clarification." 

Responding to the journalist's question about serving two posts simultaneously, one as Chairman of NADRA and the second as a serving army officer, Munir Afsar substantiated it by saying: “The founding Chairman of NADRA was also serving.”

Chairman NADRA seemed to have mostly dodged the journalist's questions in the video Azaz filmed. 

Lieutenant General Munir Afsar was appointed as the NADRA Chairman on October 2, 2023, during the interim government, following the retirement of the then-serving Chairman of NADRA, Tariq Malik.

Ashba Kamran, a citizen, had approached the Lahore High Court about the appointment of an in-service army officer as chairman of NADRA by maintaining that the appointment was “in violation of the provisions of NADRA Ordinance, 2000.”

She asserted that the caretaker government is not mandated to call decisions on permanent policy matters and urged the court to remove Munir Afsar as NADRA Chairman.

Citing the unofficial approach of the caretaker government and the lack of qualifications evaluation over appointment, Justice Asim Hafeez declared the appointment of Munir Afsar as Chairman of NADRA “unauthorised” and in violation of NADRA’s rules.

“Lest anyone misunderstand this, we make it clear that the appointment to any post under the government can only be made after a proper advertisement has been made, inviting applications from eligible candidates,” the order of the verdict said.

However, the federal government challenged the ruling of Justice Asim Hafeez.

Lahore High Court division bench, on September 11, 2023, overturned the single bench decision and restored the position of Munir Afsar as NADRA Chairman.

When asked about the alleged illegal appointment of Munib Cheema, Munir Afsar stated: “You should ask the Auditor General (AG)” about the appointment, noting, “I hadn’t made an appointment.”