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Saturday July 26, 2025

SHC orders status quo in appointments process of Lyari University

By Jamal Khurshid
July 23, 2025

The Benazir Bhutto Shaheed University Lyari building in Karachi. — Facebook@bbsulyarikhi/File
The Benazir Bhutto Shaheed University Lyari building in Karachi. — Facebook@bbsulyarikhi/File

The Sindh High Court (SHC) has ordered status quo with regard to appointments of the registrar, controller of examination and others posts in the Benazir Bhutto Shaheed University Lyari.

The interim order came on a petition of Ghulam Murtaza against the appointment process in the university. The petitioner submitted that impugned advertisements for different posts in the university had been issued without any lawful authority, framing of recruitment rules and approval of the chancellor of the university.

A counsel for the petitioner, Zamir Ghumro, submitted that the universities and boards secretary was a member of Selection Board but neither was he given the agenda of the meeting nor was he invited to the Selection Board meeting, due to which the composition of the Selection Board, which had selected candidates, was illegal. He submitted that no such recommendation could be acted upon by the Syndicate of the University.

The counsel submitted that action taken by the selection board while appointing the registrar and controller of examinations and other faculty members was illegal as the said constitution board was not constituted in accordance with the law, which was also pointed by the secretary of the universities and boards in a letter. He said the university had not wrapped up the illegal selection process and sent its recommendation to the syndicate.

He submitted that a section officer of the secretary to the government also sent a letter to the university which reflected that the university was directed to initiate a fresh selection process strictly in accordance with the provision of the law and frame proper recruitment rules for the post of registrar and controller of the examination. He said that in presence of the objection raised by the government, the appointment process cannot be termed as transparent.

The counsel submitted that the vice chancellor had called a meeting of the syndicate to give approval of the selection board recommendations and requested the court to restrain the syndicate from making appointments in any manner and conduct a fresh process based on the proper eligibility of candidates.

He pointed out that the departments of public administration and international relations had not been established at the university but their posts had been advertised. A division bench of the SHC headed by Justice Zulfiqar Ali Sangi after a preliminary hearing of the petition issued notices to the varsity, universities and boards secretary and others, and called their comments. The high court in the meantime directed the parties to maintain status quo in the appointment process.