HYDERABAD: The Hyderabad circuit bench of the Sindh High Court has issued notices to provincial minister and secretary for universities and boards, among several others, over a petition challenging a summary for the reappointment after retirement of Saleem Raza Samo as vice chancellor of Quaid-i-Awam University of Engineering, Science & Technology (QUEST), Nawabshah.

The division bench comprising Justices Nadeem Akhtar and Khadim Hussain Tunio also issued notices to secretary to Sindh chief minister, chairman of search committee for vice chancellors, head of enquiries and anticorruption establishment, retired professor and incumbent VC of QUEST Saleem Raza Samo and three other respondents directing them to file comments on the petition. The bench also put on notice additional advocate general of Sindh and said the court would take up the case after four weeks.

The petitioners, Baqir Ali Zardari, assistant professor; Sajjad Hussain, associate professor, and Farhan Ali Bhatti, security-cum-estate officer of QUEST, who were represented by Khadim Hussain Soomro advocate, said the secretary of the universities & boards department had recommended an impugned summary on Dec 30, 2022, for the approval of chief minister in violation of law.

They said the incumbent VC had attained the age of superannuation on Jan 22, 2021, and was now a retired professor hence not eligible to become professor as per law.

Prof Saleem Raza’s four-year term ends in April

They said that Mr Samo was appointed as acting VC for a year from April 20, 2018 to April 8, 2019, and was then made VC for four years from April 8, 2019, to date under CM’s orders. His term was to expire on April 7, 2023, and under QUEST Act, 1996, as well as under Sindh government’s rules, an employee would retire on having attained the age of superannuation, they said.

They said the VC’s post was not contractual but sanctioned, therefore, it could not be filled merely by appointing a retired person. The Dec 30, 2022, summary was in violation of the law, they said.

The third para of the summary said “extend tenure of Prof Dr Saleem Raza Samo as VC QUEST for a further four years period from April 8, 2023, on usual terms and conditions”, they said.

The summary “…proposed the universities and boards department may be allowed to be part of ongoing process for the appointment of VCs of several universities by the search committee for final selection by competent authority”.

The petitioners said that both the paras were recommended by the secretary in a mala fide manner. The para-3 was illegal because the sitting VC had attained superannuation age on Jan 22, 2021, and could not be reappointed under the university’s act, they said.

They said the secretary had misunderstood the law as he argued that term of a retired person might be extended as VC after superannuation. The sitting VC was not eligible to hold the post of professor. The para 3(ii) was ultra vires as advertisement for post of VC QUEST had not been published while advertisement for several other universities had already been published, they said.

They alleged that the sitting VC was found involved in immoral and illegal activities and financial and administrative illegalities and violations reported in 2020-21 annual audit report of the university, they said.

They accused the embattled VC of misusing his powers and influencing ongoing inquiries against him. They, therefore, requested the court to declare the impugned Dec 30, 2022, summary as illegal and direct the respondent secretary to publicise the post of VC QUEST as the incumbent VC had already attained the age of superannuation.

Published in Dawn, February 5th, 2023