Sindh High Court (SHC) on Friday barred the provincial authorities from removing vice chancellor of Dow University of Health Science (DUHS) from his office. The directive was issued by a division bench of SHC, headed by Justice Muhammad Ali Mazhar, which had taken up a petition filed by vice chancellor DUHS, Professor Dr Masood Hameed Khan.
The petitioner, Dr Masood, submitted before the court that Sindh government had promulgated Sindh Universities Laws (Amendment) Act, 2013 through a notification issued on September 16, 2013 He said that as per new Act, the governor can appoint vice chancellors of the universities on recommendations of the Chief Minister Sindh for a period of four years, which may be extended by the chancellor on some conditions.
He contended that vice chancellor, who had held the office for more than two terms, shall on commencement of this Act, cease to hold office. The petitioner through his counsel Farugh Naseem argued that Act promulgated in September would have retrospective effect. Farugh Naseem said that Act was mala-fides of government with intentions just to oust his client from office of vice chancellor DUHS, who was posted on December 19, 2011 for four years.
He said that retrospective operation could not have possibly given to a statute so as to improve existing right or obligations. He contended that under the law and constitution an acting governor could not give an assent to a bill of a permanent nature. He said that Governor Dr Ishratul Ibad Khan was due to return from his personal visit to the United Arab Emirates, but the assent of the bill was taken mala fidely and in undue haste from the acting governor. He prayed to court to declare the amendments in the Act as illegal and restrain the respondents-principal secretary of governor, chief secretary and secretary education from removing him from the office of VC.
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