Since the landmark judgement of the Supreme Court of Pakistan in 2014 on minority rights and protections, Islamabad High Court in its recent judgement protected dignity of sanitary workers by ending discrimination in jobs advertisements and ensuring protection for them while performing their duties to minimise risks to their lives.The judgement prima facia endorsed that trade relations and benefit-sharing arrangements are no longer governed solely by market access or geopolitical alignments, they are increasingly conditioned upon adherence to internationally recognised human rights standards, with minority rights having a central position under the United Nations conventions. Preferential trade regimes, development assistance, and economic partnerships are now explicitly tied to a country’s record on equality, non-discrimination, and protection of vulnerable communities. Progress towards protection of the rights of minority is no longer optional but an obligation if any country including Pakistan would like to be competitive and credible in a values-driven global economy.This reality was underscored when Pakistan’s preferential trade status under the European Union’s Generalised Scheme of Preferences Plus (GSP+) came under heightened scrutiny in recent years. Between 2020 and 2023, the European Parliament repeatedly raised concerns regarding Pakistan’s compliance with core human rights conventions underpinning GSP+, particularly relating to freedom of religion, discriminatory labour practices, and the misuse of blasphemy laws. Several parliamentary resolutions warned that persistent failures to address systemic discrimination against religious minorities could jeopardise Pakistan’s continued access to duty-free exports worth billions of euros annually. Although Pakistan ultimately retained its GSP+ status, the episode served as a clear signal that economic privileges in the modern world are inseparable from demonstrable commitments to human rights and minority protection.The Islamabad High Court (IHC) delivered justice to minority workers in two different decisions on two public interest litigation writ petitions filed by this author for the protection of the rights of marginalised and minority communities. The Court confronted the long-standing and widely criticised practice of advertising sanitation and janitorial jobs exclusively for Christians, a practice that not only perpetuated social stigma but also violated the constitutional promise of equality. It is striking that, until this author took this burden upon himself, no meaningful attention had been paid over the past seventy years to an issue of such a fundamental importance and urgency.The court held that specifying “Christians only” in job advertisements is unconstitutional and discriminatory, contravening Articles 25 and 27 of the Constitution, which guarantee equality before law and prohibit discrimination in public employment. The Court categorically directed all federal and provincial authorities, as well as private institutions, to replace such language with the inclusive term “citizen,” thereby dismantling an institutional mechanism that had effectively relegated an entire community to degrading occupational stereotypes.Equally transformative is the Court’s ruling on the safety and dignity of sanitation workers many of whom belong to religious minorities and have historically borne the brunt of hazardous labour. Taking judicial notice of recurring fatalities caused by methane gas inhalation, the IHC prohibited the manual entry of workers into gutters and manholes. The Court ordered the mandatory use of modern machinery for sewer cleaning and directed authorities to provide adequate safety gear and protective equipment, recognising that the right to life cannot be compromised by administrative neglect or cost-cutting measures. These two issues, religious discrimination in employment and the inhumane treatment of sanitation workers, have frequently featured in international human rights assessments of Pakistan, contributing to its placement on various global watchlists and critical reports by international monitoring bodies. The IHC’s intervention, therefore, is not merely corrective at the domestic level but carries significant implications for Pakistan’s international human rights standing.The judgment also considered the “Unequal Citizens: Ending Systemic Discrimination Against Minorities” report published in May 2022 by the National Commission for Human Rights (NCHR). Prepared in consultation with civil society groups, the report documented entrenched discrimination against religious minorities in Pakistan’s public employment practices and labour conditions, through discriminatory recruitment advertisements that specified “non-Muslims only,” particularly for sanitation and related tasks. The report also highlighted the perilous working conditions these workers face, including inadequate safety equipment, lack of job security, minimal compensation for injury or death, and the societal stigma attached to manual sanitation work. Beyond documenting these injustices, the NCHR recommended replacing manual gutter and sewer cleaning with mechanical methods, ensuring adequate protective gear, improving wages and social security, banning discriminatory job advertisements, and enhancing transparency in the filling of minority-reserved posts, recommendations the IHC expressly referenced in its decision. To ensure the judgment’s transformative potential is realised, it is imperative that the federal government immediately issue binding notifications directing all provinces and relevant departments to comply strictly with the Court’s orders. Effective implementation cannot be left to bureaucratic discretion or delayed through administrative inertia, uniform compliance across provinces is essential if constitutional guarantees are to have practical meaning.Furthermore, the legislature must seize this moment to enact comprehensive labour law reforms making it mandatory for employers, whether public or private to provide sanitation workers with modern equipment, protective gear, and safety training. Equally important is the enactment of statutory provisions to compensate the families of workers who lost their lives in hazardous sanitation work due to the absence of state-mandated safety measures. Justice demands that those who paid the ultimate price for systemic neglect are not forgotten.By ordering strict implementation and requiring compliance reports within a fixed timeframe, the IHC has moved beyond symbolic adjudication to enforceable constitutional reform. The judgment represents a decisive assertion that minority rights are not acts of state benevolence but enforceable constitutional guarantees. In doing so, the Court has reaffirmed that a society aspiring to be modern, civilised, and globally respected must eradicate discrimination in all its forms and uphold human dignity without exception. In an era where judicial courage often defines national character, this landmark verdict stands as a powerful reminder that constitutional courts remain the last and sometimes most effective guardians of pluralism, equality, and human life.
The author
Muhammad Majid Bashir is a former judge and senior partner
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