Autonomous colleges: Court can step in if constitution is violated

Hearing on boards of governors case adjourned for two weeks.

LAHORE:

The Lahore High Court, on Tuesday, observed that while policy making rested with the government, court could take notice if the policy conflicted with the constitution. The remarks came during a suo motu hearing regarding the establishment of the Boards of Governors (BOGs) at government colleges.

Chief Justice (CJ) Ijaz Ahmad Chaudhry, heading the division bench, said, “If the government makes a bad policy, people will not vote for it in the next election.”

Counsel for the students and teachers, Asad Manzoor Butt, submitted that establishment of the BOGs was in violation of the Constitution. After the introduction of the BOGs, he said, the annual fee for FSc students had increased to Rs86,000 so that education was now out of reach for the poor. He said the role of principals would be diminished as the BOGs were only answerable to the education secretary. The chief justice retorted, “If the BOGs are toothless, what will be their purpose?” Butt suggested the court seek the opinion of lawyer Abid Hassan Minto about the issue and the bench adjourned the hearing for two weeks.

The CJ had taken suo motu notice of the matter following alleged beating by the police of students and teachers protesting outside the Punjab Assembly last December.

They were protesting the constitution of the BOGs for as many as 26 colleges of the province.

The protestors were concerned that the BOGs would decrease the number of teachers at the colleges and raise the fees beyond the financial capacity of the students. This, they said, would have a detrimental effect on the quality of education.

Dozens of teachers and students had sustained injuries while many others were taken into custody during the protests.

Published in The Express Tribune, March 16^th, 2011.