LAHORE - The Lahore High Court Tuesday set aside the condition of age limit to get education.

Justice Atir Mahmood of the LHC announced the verdict on a petition moved by Zobia Amjad, a resident of Faisalabad,  who was denied admission to a local college for being overage under the policy.

“When there is no embargo on receiving education in old age in a number of other countries then why is here,” the judge observed and struck down the policy.

 “There is no age limit for education,” Justice Mahmood further observed.  The judge held that  the impugned notification/policy deprived the petitioner and many other candidates who wanted to complete their education at a later stage of their age.  He declared it unlawful, with directives to the educational institutions to consider admission of the petitioner along with other such candidates in accordance with law.

Zobia Amjad, the petitioner, had questioned the policy through her counsel Advocate Imran Ghumman for being contrary to fundamental rights protected in the Constitution.  She said she passed her matriculation in 2009 from Board of Intermediate & Secondary Education, Faisalabad and could not continue further education due to her marriage. 

She said her marriage ended up into divorce in 2016 and then she decided to resume her education.  She said she applied for admission in a private college, but was denied admission on the basis of the impugned policy/notification of the government issued on July 20, 2016. She prayed the court to set aside the notification and allow her to continue her studies.

 The government’s counsel, however, opposed the petition, pleading that it was a policy matter and the court could not interfere in it. 

After hearing both sides, Justice Mahmood allowed the petition and observed that the policy issued by the secretary higher education cannot be a policy. He observed policy is made by the government which meant “Cabinet”.

The judge directed the educational institutions to consider the applicant for education.