KARACHI, Feb 20: Sindh Law Minister Ayaz Soomro has said that there is no condition of domicile for seeking admission to the S.M. Law College and similarly to all colleges of Sindh and students from any part of the province can get admission on open merit.

The law minister was responding to written and supplementary questions asked by Arif Mustafa Jatoi during the question hour in the assembly on Wednesday as the question hour pertained to the law department.

There were total five questions only, which were asked by Mr Jatoi of the NPP and as a result the question hour ended within 40 minutes.

The minister said that during the period from January 1st 2011 to Dec 31st 2011 the over all conviction rate was 37 per cent while highest rate of conviction was recorded in Karachi south where it was 67 per cent and the lowest rate was in Shikarpur, which was only three per cent, followed by Larkana with eight per cent.

The conviction rate in Karachi Malir was 65 per cent, in Karachi west 56 per cent, Karachi central 46 per cent and Karachi east 36 per cent. Likewise in Hyderabad 32 per cent, Dadu 26 per cent, Badin 47 per cent, Thatta 37 per cent, Mirpurkhas 28 per cent, Sanghar 49 per cent, Thar at Mithi 29 per cent, Sukkur 31 per cent, Shaheed Benazirabad 30 per cent, Naushahro Feroze 27 per cent, Khairpur 35 per cent, Ghotki 28 per cent, Jacobabad 39 per cent, Umerkot 58 per cent, Jamshoro Kotri 26 per cent, Matiri 13 per cent, Tando Mohmmed Khan 58 per cent, Tando Allahyar 49 per cent, Kashmore at Kandhkot 11 per cent, and Shadadkot at Kambar 25 per cent.

Replying to a supplementary question, Mr Soomro said in the prosecution cases of the government the conviction rate was higher while in cases where private parties were prosecutor the rate of conviction was far less as the parties settled their cases outside the court and the accused got off scot-free.

Replying to another supplementary question, the law minister informed the house that there was no slot of the judge vacant in any court in the province.

The government had appointed 1,100 law officers in 17-19 grades through the public service commission and as such there was no court without a law officer.

Besides, he said other staff was also recruited in courts so that there would be no hurdle in disposal of cases.

Replying to another question, he said since the Sindh Local Government Ordinance, 1979 was protected by 8th amendment to the constitution, in the year 1985 under Article 270-A of the constitution, neither it was required, nor submitted for vote to the assembly for its ratification.

When a member drew attention of the law minister towards observation of the chief justice of the Sindh High Court regarding corruption in lower courts, the law minister said his department had no role in checking corruption as all courts fell under their authority.

Answering another written question, the minister’s reply was that under Section 14 of the criminal procedure code the provincial government might on the recommendation of the High Court, confer on any person, including a former executive magistrate, all or any of the powers conferred or conferrable on a judicial magistrate in respect to particular class or particular classes of cases or in regard to cases generally in any local area and such magistrates shall be called special judicial magistrates.