SZMC chairman appointment process challenged

LAHORE : The process for the appointment of chairman/dean of Sheikh Zayed Medical Complex (SZMC) has been challenged before the Lahore High Court for being held with relaxed criteria of the minimum eligibility.

Prof Shahzad Ashraf, Head of Department of Transplant Surgery (Kidney) at the SZMC, assailed the process in a writ petition filed through Advocate Nasir Qureshi.

The petitioner contended that the eligibility criteria had been relaxed by the Punjab government in violation of a reported judgment of the LHC and decisions of the Board of Governors (BoG) of the SZMC.

He submitted that the government had no legal justification or lawful authority to alter the minimum eligibility criteria set for the post with mala-fide intention to accommodate some blue-eyed candidates.

He pointed out that from previous advertisements a candidate was required to have at least 15 publications on his credit, including at least three international publications to become eligible for the post whereas, number of required publications through impugned advertisement, has been reduced to eight.

He stated that by limiting eligibility only in favour of professors in public sector universities, all other eligible candidates, who are or have been professors in any other well-reputed institution, have been deprived of competing on merit.