PESHAWAR, Sept 19: Though official sources claim that the NWFP government will soon establish a women university in the provincial capital, a law ministry official has said the department concerned has yet to begin work on the legal process of the institution.

Under the law, a public sector university cannot not begin functioning unless the provincial assembly enacts its establishment. The assembly has yet to carry out the required process.

Three public sector universities— in Kohat, Hazara and Malakand— had already been chartered through ordinances. Constitutionally, the chancellor can charter a university through an ordinance in the absence of the provincial assembly.

The Muttahida Majlis-i-Amal government had announced that it would establish a separate medical college and a university for girl students who do not want to study in co-education system. The provincial government had earmarked Rs1 million for the women university in the annual budget.

The sources said the education department was working out modalities for the establishment of the university and its classes were likely to begin in the first week of November. In the first academic year, around 200 girls would be granted admissions, they said.

SESSION: Speaker of the NWFP assembly Bakht Jahan Khan has summoned the next session of the assembly on Sept 23.

On Sept 10, Mr Khan prorogued the session after a scuffle between the assembly staff and newsmen on a minor issue broke out. The same day the opposition wanted the house to pass a new bill introduced by the deputy speaker.

The opposition had protested at the speaker’s decision to prorogue the session without touching upon a significant portion of the jointly decided agenda.