KARACHI: Sindh Chief Minister Syed Murad Ali Shah, presiding over a cabinet meeting, approved the Relaxation of Upper Age Limit Rules, and passed two bills, Sindh Civil Courts (Amendment) Bill 2025 and Sindh Universities and Institutes Laws (Amendment) Bill returned by the Governor with his observations.
Provincial ministers, advisors, special assistants, acting Chief Secretary Musadik Khan, and concerned secretaries attended the meeting, held here at CM House on Saturday.
After thorough deliberations and discussions, the Sindh Cabinet approved the Sindh Civil Servants, Relaxation of Upper Age Limit, Rules and directed the Services, General Administration, and Coordination Department (SGA&CD) to notify the new rules, which grant significant upper age relaxations for candidates applying for government jobs.
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According to the cabinet decision, the general upper age relaxation applies to various categories of candidates. Government Servants with two years of Continuous Service will be eligible for up to five years of relaxation, to be granted by the respective Administrative Department.
General Candidates will be entitled to up to two years of relaxation by the Administrative Department and up to five years by the SGA&CD.
Widows or Children of Deceased Civil Servants means those whose parents died during service will also be eligible for up to five years of relaxation, granted by the Administrative Department.
Persons with Disabilities, Divorced Women, and Widows will also be entitled to up to five years of relaxation, granted by the Administrative Department.
Additionally, widows and divorced women must present relevant certificates, such as a death certificate (for widows) or a divorce certificate (for divorced women), at the time of applying for age relaxation.
Under Rule-5, upper age relaxation for general candidates will be granted based on compelling reasons and sound justifications. These reasons may include medical issues, the death of parents or a spouse, natural calamities, delays in appointments, recruitment bans, and other significant circumstances. To assess these cases, special committees will be constituted.
Recognizing prolonged delays in recruitment and the overwhelming number of applications, the Sindh government has approved a blanket relaxation of up to five years beyond the maximum age limit prescribed in the appointment or recruitment rules.
This relaxation applies across all departments, except for the Police and posts filled through the Combined Competitive Examination (CCE) conducted by the Sindh Public Service Commission (SPSC). This relaxation will remain in effect for an initial period of two years, starting from January 1, 2025, to December 31, 2026.
Sindh Civil Courts (Amendment) Bill 2025: The cabinet was told that a recent amendment bill passed by the assembly has been returned by the Sindh Governor with observation regarding the jurisdiction of the Sindh High Court.
The Governor expressed reservations, citing Article 175(2) of the Constitution of Pakistan, which states that courts can only exercise jurisdiction conferred by law. He emphasised that the SHC’s original jurisdiction, derived from Clause 9 of the Letters Patent of 1866, allows it to hear civil cases exceeding a specified pecuniary value within Karachi. The Sindh Civil Courts Ordinance, 1962, grants original jurisdiction to District Courts but does not override the SHC’s jurisdiction.
After thorough discussion, the cabinet passed the bill, asserting that the proposed Bill of 2025 does not violate Article 175 of the Constitution. The Bill aligns with the Sindh Civil Courts Ordinance, 1962, which has been amended multiple times without prior objections.
The Cabinet further argued that the backlog of cases at the SHC is overwhelming, with only a few benches hearing civil suits. In contrast, district courts have a larger pool of judges, which could facilitate quicker resolutions. The judgment in C.P. No. 5913 of 2018 (Ghulam Asghar Pathan case) also highlighted the excessive burden on the SHC and recommended redistributing caseloads.
Regarding judicial expertise, the Cabinet pointed out that maritime matters remain under the SHC’s jurisdiction, while intellectual property cases are handled by specialized tribunals and banking matters are dealt with by dedicated banking courts. The provincial legislature enacted the amendment as a remedial measure to provide swift and cost-effective justice.
The cabinet was told that the provincial assembly has passed the Sindh Universities and Institutes Laws (Amendment) Bill, which expands the eligibility criteria for Vice Chancellor appointments in public sector universities.
This bill was initially proposed by the Universities and Boards Department through the Search Committee and underwent extensive deliberation before receiving Provincial Cabinet approval on December 4, 2024. After further review and modifications by the Standing Committee, the Provincial Assembly passed the bill on January 31, 2025.
Upon submission for assent, the Sindh Governor raised objections, particularly concerning the removal of the PhD requirement for Vice Chancellor candidates. The Governor also referenced the guidelines of the Federal Higher Education Commission (HEC), which stipulate that Vice Chancellors should be distinguished academicians, preferably with a PhD.
It was pointed out during the discussion that the original bill proposed by the U&B Department, candidates must hold a Master’s degree, preferably a PhD, in the relevant field, along with 15 years of experience in academia, civil society, research, or leadership roles, as well as a distinguished record in research and publication. The Standing Committee proposed amendments to clarify these experience requirements while retaining the same basic criteria which the assembly has passed.
The cabinet was informed that in the original bill, it was stated that a cadre officer selected as Vice Chancellor must resign from civil service. The Standing Committee amended this to specify that the officer must either resign or seek retirement from service, depending on the individual case which the assembly also passed.
It was also pointed out that the original bill did not specify an age limit.
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