SHC orders SALU to submit Ghotki MPA’s degrees

GHOTKI: A two-member Sukkur bench of the Sindh High Court has directed the Shah Abdul Latif Bhitai University to submit the educational documents of Sindh MPA Jam Akramullah Dharejo from Khairpur.

The bench, comprising Zahid Hamid and Tasleem Ahmed, heard the petition filed by Mir Khan Maher in which he accused Dharejo of falsely declaring himself a graduate. In his petition, Maher submitted that Dharejo was not eligible to participate in the February 2008 general elections as he had not completed a Bachelor’s degree. He has only completed a certificate course from Azizia Madrassa in Pir Goth, Khairpur which is not equivalent to an undergraduate degree, Maher maintained.

He submitted that in 2004, Dharejo sat for the BA-I and BA-II examinations but failed them. In 2005, he wrote a letter to SALU, asking the university to declare the certificate equivalent to that of a Bachelor’s degree. SALU issued the letter, but did not issue any certificate or degree.

“As he does not hold any Bachelor’s degree, he should be deemed ineligible to hold an MPA’s office and re-elections should be conducted,” submitted the petitioner.

The court has directed SALU’s legal adviser Abdul Qayum Sheikh, who was in court, to submit all the records pertaining to Dharejo’s alleged Bachelor’s degree. Sheikh replied that the university needed at least 20 days. The judges said that the distance between the university and Sukkur was not much and it should only take one day to submit the documents.

The court, then, granted the university eight days to submit them and adjourned the hearing till July 22.

The accused MPA and his counsel were not present in court. Meanwhile, assistant election commissioner, Ghotki, Ghulam Qadir Solangi and Maher’s counsel Abdul Haq Odho attended the hearing. The petition was filed by Maher to judges Bhajandas and Imam Buksh Baloch on June 29. On June 30, Justice Bhajandas recused himself from hearing the case as he is a member of SALU’s syndicate. After two days, Justice Baloch began the hearing with a single-member bench.

Dharejo, who is Sindh education minister Pir Mazharul Haq’s son-in-law, is the first MPA from Ghotki whose degree has been challenged.

Published in The Express Tribune, July 14^th, 2010.