Pakistan, Jan. 29 -- The Supreme Court of Pakistan has laid down key legal principles regarding reinstatement and back wages for police employees, ruling that annulment of a dismissal order does not automatically entitle an employee to full salary and benefits for the intervening period. Instead, the authority to grant or deny back wages rests with the competent authority, which must exercise this discretion fairly, reasonably, and transparently.

In a reporting-approved detailed judgment, a five-member bench headed by Justice Shahid Waheed issued a consolidated decision on multiple civil appeals and petitions involving employees of the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Police. Other members of the bench included Justice Naeem Akhtar Afghan, Justice Mal...