Humayun Khan
PESHAWAR: Peshawar High Court (PHC) dismissed writ of Joint Action Council ending of free education under quota for employees children and declared Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) legal between University of Peshawar (UOP) and Islamia College University (ICU).
The petitioners, who are claiming themselves to be the elected representatives of the employees of Islamia College University Peshawar ‘ICUP)” or for that matter members of Joint Action Council (JAC) are aggrieved of the impugned MoU whereby both the institutes i’e’ UOP and ICP agreed to reserve the quota for admission of each other employees on reciprocal basis and the candidates admitted on such quota will pay full non-subsidized prescribed fee of the programme in which admission is granted.
Both the universities UOP and ICP filed their respective Para-wise comments wherein they had strongly resisted the issuance of the desired writ on various legal and factual objections’ The main objection of UOP is that, the petitioners have not impugned the decision of the Syndicate taken in its 436ft meeting dated 18.6.2021, on the basis of which the impugned MoU was issued.
PHC’s divisional bench comprising of Justice Abdul Shakoor and Justice Syed Arshad Ali heard the writ plea while Justice Abdul Shakoor authored the judgement while UOP’s Law Officer Riaz Ali along with Khalid Rehman and Zartaj Anwar advocates appeared before court during hearings.
The MoU was to be implemented with immediate effect for a period of three years, after getting approval from the Syndicate. It is also specifically mentioned in the MoU that any of the university may revoke the same with prior notice well before admission.
The lawyers argued both the universities are competent enough to frame a policy or for that matter signed MoU with each other for running of their financial matters’ particularly when they can waive or reserve seats for their employee or children, in the same manner they can withdraw waiver and reservation of seats’.
The petitioners have enjoyed free education facilities under the notifications of the respondents and wholeheartedly acquiesced their decisions; but, on the other, when both the institutions are facing hardships due to financial crunch, and when they decided to charge fee from their employees or their children by signing the impugned MoU, how come the petitioners are showing reluctance to abide by the same without referring any law or rules.
PHC’s divisional bench comprising Justice Abdul Shakoor and Justice Syed Arshad Ali declared UOP and ICU MOU correct and as per law while dismissed JAC writ plea against ending free education facility on quota to employees children.
