The Sindh High Court (SHC) issued notices to the federal and Sindh governments on Monday seeking comments on a constitutional petition that seeks halting the handing over the Jinnah Postgraduate Medical Centre (JPMC), the National Institute of Cardiovascular Diseases (NICVD) and the National Institute of Child Health (NICH) to provincial government under the 18th Amendment. A full SHC bench, comprising Justice Sajjad Ali Shah, Justice Maqbool Baqar and Justice Faisal Arab, was hearing the petition that was filed by around 155 employees of the three state-run hospitals. The court served notices to the Inter-Provincial Coordination Division, the Implementation Committee of the 18th Amendment, the attorney general of Pakistan and the Sindh advocate general.
Sindh Health Secretary Hashim Raza Zaidi appeared before the bench and said all facilities are being provided to the JPMC, the NICVD and the NICH as per rules. Some directors, professor level officers and a few staffers of the three hospitals also appeared in the court. The counsel for the petitioners pleaded that the credibility of the three institutions is unbeatable and they are providing quality healthcare services. He argued that under Schedule IV of the constitution, it is clearly mentioned that all research, legal and medical training providing institutions are under the control of the federal government, so they could not be handed over to the provincial governments. The court adjourned the hearing until February 13 and issued notices to the respondents to submit their comments.