SHC suspends appointment of Dr Naushad as DUHS VC

Karachi
The Sindh High Court on Thursday suspended the notification issued regarding appointment of a vice-chancellor of the Dow University of Health Sciences till further orders.
The direction came on a petition by the Pakistan Medical Association which challenged the appointment of Dr Naushad Sheikh by Governor Dr Ishratul Ebad. The petitioner's counsel, Haider Waheed, submitted that the Sindh chief minister had forwarded three candidates for the slot of DUHS VC, among which Dr Saeed Qureshi was the topmost choice.
However, the governor used his discretionary powers to appoint Dr Naushad Sheikh, although he was already serving as VC of the Liaquat University of Medical and Health Sciences.
The counsel submitted that the authority to appoint a VC for the varsity lay with the provincial chief minister and not the governor.
The appointment, he argued, was an attempt to destroy medical education in the province and that the impugned notification was issued without considering the rules or merit. Thus, he concluded that the order was liable to be struck down.
A division bench headed by Justice Munib Akhtar issued notices to the DUHS, government law officers and others for October 13.