PESHAWAR: A Peshawar High Court bench has dismissed a petition challenging the appointment of University of Swabi’s Vice Chancellor Prof Dr Imtiaz Ali Khan as acting vice chancellor of Women University Swabi and declared the relevant notification of provincial government in accordance with law.

The bench of Justice Ishtiaq Ibrahim and Justice Ahmad Ali pronounced the order after completion of arguments by lawyers appearing for the petitioner and respondents including higher education department, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.

The bench also recalled a stay order issued earlier issued by the court of suspending the said notification.

The petition was filed by a resident Jawad Ali Mir who had contended that the notification issued by higher education department on July 31, 2019, was against the provisions of KP Universities Act, 2012.

He had requested the court to declare void the impugned notification authorizing Prof Imtiaz Ali to look after the affairs of the office of the vice-chancellor, WUS.

The respondents included the provincial government through chief secretary, higher education secretary, the WUS chancellor through the governor’s principal secretary, the WUS registrar, and UoS VC Prof Imtiaz Ali.

The petitioner’s counsel said the impugned notification was issued by the higher education secretary on the completion of the three-year tenure of the outgoing WUS VC, Prof Khanzadi Fatima.

He said the KP Universities Act, 2012, provided that the pro-vice chancellor of a public sector university should perform as the acting VC in case of the tenure of the regular VC expired.

The lawyer said the law also allowed the term extension to the outgoing VC. He said the KP governor had formally asked the outgoing VCs of some universities to act as the interim VCs but in the instant case, that didn’t happen, which was an act of discrimination by the governor against the outgoing VC.

Senior advocate Muzamil Khan appeared for the respondents and contended that under the law the senior most dean of the university had to be appointed as pro-VC, who should perform as acting VC in absence of the permanent one. However, he stated that there were no permanent faculty members in the university due to which pro-VC could not be appointed by the government.

He contended that officials functioning on key posts in the said university were on contract basis and not permanent basis.

He contended that being chancellor of the university, the KP governor was empowered to direct any other VC to look after the affairs of the WUS. He added that Dr Imtiaz was directed to look after affairs of the office of VC, WUS, only for the time being till appointment of permanent VC.

Published in Dawn, September 21st, 2019