LARKANA, Oct 24: The Larkana circuit bench of the Sindh High Court on Thursday suspended a final show-cause notice issued to Prof Saeed Ahmed Sangi by vice-chancellor of the Shaheed Mohtarma Benazir Bhutto Medical University (SMBBMU) Dr Akbar Haidar Soomro.

The division bench of Justices Ahmed Ali Sheikh and Naimatullah Phulpoto further restrained the VC and the registrar of SMBBMU, principal of the Chandka Medical College, chairman of the Higher Education Commission, governor of Sindh and Sindh government from taking any action against the professor and adjourned the case to Dec 5.

Prof Sangi who had filed a petition, seeking suspension of notice to him by the university, did not seek assistance of any lawyer and pleaded his case personally before the bench.

The bench said in its order that despite the fact the court had already passed a restraining order on April 10, directing the respondents not to take any coercive action against the petitioner, they issued a final show-cause notice against him on Oct 12.

The petitioner said that he had almost completed his service and was nearing the retirement but the VC, whose very appointment as head of the university had been challenged in this court in other cases, was bent upon destroying his entire career just to deprive him of his pension and other monetary benefits.

Mr Samtio who represented the VC and the registrar of SMBBMU as well as the principal of CMC challenged the very maintainability of the petition and insisted the petitioner was not entitled to any relief.

The order read: “Be that as it may, since the VC of SMBBMU in defiance of order dated April 10, has issued final show-cause notice to the petitioner and in view of the above mentioned fact we are left with no other option but to suspend the final show-cause notice published in a local newspaper on Oct 12.”

Therefore, the order said, the bench directed the respondents not to take any action against the petitioner under the final notice till further orders and adjourned the case to Dec 5.