The Sindh High Court has issued notices to the secretary of the universities and boards department and others on a petition against the appointment of the vice chancellor of Benazir Bhutto Shaheed University Lyari (BBSUL) as additional charge.
Petitioner Faraz Abbas submitted that the Sindh government had appointed Prof Dr Amjad Siraj Memon VC of BBSUL for 45 days on February 12, 2022 though he was already posted to the Dow University of Health Sciences as professor of surgery.
He submitted that Dr Memon was appointed on a temporary basis due to the absence of ex-VC Prof Dr Akhtar Baloch in the wake of an inquiry against him; however, neither the inquiry has been completed against Dr Baloch nor a permanent VC has been appointed despite the lapse of one year and nine months.
The petitioner’s counsel Imtiaz Ali Solangi submitted that Prof Memon retired on attaining the age of superannuation in the month of January 2023, but he has illegally hold the position of BBSUL VC without any further extension as well as without the prescribed procedure.
He submitted that the competent authority also appointed Dr Memon as VC of Jinnah Sindh Medical University for a period of four years but he illegally holds the acting charge of the Lyari university’s VC.
The counsel submitted that the director general audit also recommended appointment of a permanent VC, observing that Prof Memon is holding the post of VC BBSUL without any justification and in violation of prevailing rules. The counsel said that the audit report also observed that over a period of one year no any serious effort had been made by higher authorities to appoint another person who is eligible to hold the post on regular basis.
The court was requested to declare the acting VC was holding the post illegally and was liable to be issued with a show-cause notice as under what authority of the law he was holding such offices at the cost of the public exchequer and against the principles of good governance.
The counsel also requested the court to direct the official respondents to immediately dispense with the service of Dr Memon.
A division bench headed by SHC Acting Chief Justice Aqeel Ahmed Abbasi, after preliminary hearing of the petition, issued notices to the secretary of universities and boads and others and called their comments on December 12.