Amendment in Sindh Ombudsman law challenged in SHC

KARACHI: A petitioner on Wednesday challenged amendment in the law regarding appointment of the provincial ombudsman in Sindh High Court (SHC), ARY News reported.

Sindh Assembly recently passed a legislative bill that confers the authority on the chief minister to appoint the provincial ombudsman.

Before the amendment in the Ombudsman law it was prerogative of the provincial governor to appointment ombudsman for the province.

The petition termed the transfer of authority about appointment of the ombudsman against the law and pleaded to the court to declare the amendment in the act of law as unlawful.

The Chief Minister, Governor of Sindh and provincial secretary law department have been made party in the case.

The bench while hearing the petition, summoned reply from the government of Sindh and others in the case.

Speaker Sindh Assembly recently notified the amended in Ombudsman law that confers the authority on the chief minister to appoint the provincial ombudsman.

The tenure of the ombudsman will be three years, as per the law passed by the assembly.

The provincial legislature had re-passed the amended in Ombudsman law for appointment of the ombudsman on January 22 after the governor had sent back the legislation to the assembly with his objections over the bill.

The opposition parties had staged walkout from the assembly proceedings in protest over disagreement with the legislation.

Sindh Minister Saeed Ghani, later talking to media said that the authority was taken back from the governor to appoint the provincial ombudsman as the 18th Constitutional Amendment had rendered the office of the provincial governor as ceremonial and devoid it of any such executive authority.