MUZAFFARABAD: AJK defers approval to private university
By Our Staff Correspondent
MUZAFFARABAD, May 10: The cabinet of Azad Jammu and Kashmir has deferred approval to an ordinance aimed at establishing a science and technology university in the private sector and decided to refer the matter to the federal government’s Higher Education Commission, reportedly after reservations expressed by some of the ministers, official sources told Dawn.
The draft law, which was allegedly being sponsored by Legislative Assembly Speaker Sardar Siab Khalid from behind the scene, topped the agenda of a cabinet meeting here with Prime Minister Sardar Sikandar Hayat Khan in the chair.
As debate on the issue began, the prime minister informed the cabinet that Higher Education Commission Chairman Dr Atta-ur-Rehman had telephoned him to suggest that the draft should be sent to the commission for vetting, the sources said.
Upon this, a senior government official, who wanted the ordinance get through the meeting, proposed that it could be recorded in the minutes that the cabinet had approved the law and then sent it to the commission.
But many ministers rejected the suggestion, saying that it was better to forward the draft to the commission, particularly when the prime minister himself was in its favour. They reminded the meeting of some other private sector universities, which they said had been “selling degrees in every nook and corner and thus bringing the higher seats of learning into disrepute”.
According to the sources, the ministers said the government should be very careful and avoid hasty legislation in this regard.
Following the debate, the cabinet directed the education secretary to send the ordinance to the Higher Education Commission to ascertain whether the proposed university fulfilled the guidelines laid down for private sector institutions and then to bring it on the cabinet’s agenda.
The sources said the prime minister declared that in any case the government would make it mandatory for the university to open its campuses only in the territory Azad Kashmir.
On other agenda items, the cabinet okayed an amendment to the AJK Public Service Commission Act, raising the strength of its members, including chairman, from five to seven.
An amendment in the AJK Legislative Assembly Secretariat (Recruitment) Terms and Conditions Act 1976, was also approved to bring uniformity in the services rules of assembly employees and other government servants. The amendment empowers the speaker to retire any employee of the assembly after 25-year service.
A six-member ministerial committee, led by Senior Minister Syed Mumtaz Gillani, was formed to look into the preparation of Khumas Bill for the welfare and support of Banu Hashim and Sadaat.
Members of the committee are: Law Minister Raja Nisar, Forests Minister Mufti Mansoor, Zakat Minister Hamid Raza, Auqaf Minister Chaudhry Aziz and Industries Minister Masood Khalid. The body will look into the availability of funds of Khumas and submit report at the next cabinet meeting.
The cabinet also formed a two-member committee, to supervise the auction of bungalows in Mirpur’s Wapda Colony.
