PA panel greenlights Universities Act tweak

The Sindh Assembly Standing Committee approved the government's amendments to the laws governing the appointment of Vice Chancellors in universities across the province.

The meeting of the standing committee was specially attended by Minister for Education Sardar Shah, Interior Minister Ziaul Hassan Lanjar and Shahnaz Wazir Ali. The meeting was presided over by the Chairman of the Committee, Dr Sikandar Shoro.

The committee has approved the re-presentation of the Universities Amendment Bill in the Assembly.

Sikandar Shoro said that now Masters and PhD holders can be appointed as VCs. The committee has also suggested appointing cadre officers, civil society figures and intellectuals with qualifications as VCs.

He said that the opposition had earlier been taken into confidence on the bill, but today the opposition members in the committee opposed the amendments for unknown reasons.

MQM member of the Sindh Assembly and member of the committee Sabir Qaimkhani, while talking to the media, said, we have strongly opposed the bill. The amendments have been approved due to the government majority in the committee. The Sindh government is destroying academia in the province.

Jamaat-e-Islami MPA Muhammad Farooq, while talking to the media, said, "I am not a member of the standing committee. I presented proposals in the house against the amendments.