KARACHI - The lawmakers of ruling PPP and PML-F, in the first sitting of new session, on Thursday strongly censured the admission policy of the Karachi University, through which students from rural areas of Sindh have been denied admission. During discussion on ‘The Habib University Bill 2012’, the lawmakers supported the establishment of private university, advising the government to ensure the admission on merit especially for the students of rural areas who were denied of admissions in the Karachi University.Education Minister Pir Mazharul Haq, who moved the bill, while sharing the objectives of the legislation said that Habib group of industries playing significant role in social field, now they shown will to establish a high tech university in Karachi with campuses in other parts of the province. He said that present government encourages the private sector to make investment in the education sector.Dr Ahmed Ali Shah of PPP while supporting the bill said that it should be made sure the students from rural areas will get equal opportunity in this high tech university. MQM’s leader and provincial minister Faisal Sabzwari supported the bill and said that Habib group also made presentation on the project of university. He emphasized that poor students also should get equal opportunity of admission in this university.Ms. Marvi Rashdi of PML-F supported the establishment of private university. She strongly condemned the admission policy of the Karachi University, through which only 33 seats have been fixed for the students rural areas. Ms. Humera Alwani of ruling PPP also came down hard against the admission policy of the Karachi University, which denied the right of students of province. She informed the house that Karachi University has adopted a policy through which first priority given to students of Karachi, second priority to the students of the other provinces and areas of Pakistan and third and less priority given for students of the Sindh province, except Karachi.  She informed the house that the students of the other areas of the province were banned of getting admission in the educational institutions in Karachi, demanded from her party government to end this admission policy in the Karachi University immediately.Ms. Nusrat Sehar Abbasi of PML-F also raised the issue of alleged discrimination with the students of the province by Karachi University. She said that students from Kashmir, Punjab, Balochistan and Khyber Phakhtunkhawa can get admission but students who have domicile of the other districts of the province denied of admission in the educational institution in their capital city. She said that the education minister should inform the house which steps he has taken for elimination of this alleged bias admission policy of Karachi University.On this occasion, PPP leader and finance minister Syed Murad Ali Shah stood and urged the chair to restrict the lawmakers to speak on the bill instead of raising other issues.He said that if anyone has problem, he or she can bring adjournment motion on it.On this, Speaker Nisar Ahmed Khuhro also observed that issues of Karachi University persist, so the members raising their apprehensions about new university.ENDSpeaker said that this house passed a resolution, through which two campuses of Karachi University were supposed to be established in other districts of the province. The Assembly secretariat reminded the Karachi University and urged the necessary steps to establish two campuses, he added.MQM’s provincial minister Muhammad Zubair Khan said that members should be restricted to speak on this bill.MQM lawmaker said that they have also reservations that the students of other areas have been deprived of getting admission in other universities in Sindh.  Education Minister Pir Mazharul Haq said that no one should play their politics on the subject of education.Later, house passed bill into law for establishment of Habib University in private sector unanimously.Meanwhile, Sindh Assembly also passed another amendment bill of Shaheed Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto Institute of Science and Technology (SZABIST), through which more powers were given to the board of directors of the institute.

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