Karachi (Syed Muhammad Askari) The Sindh Higher Education Commission has rejected the parts of the “Draft Regulatory Framework 2026” prepared by the Federal Higher Education Commission for the establishment and accreditation of higher education institutions in the country, through which the powers of university licensing, inspection, monitoring, accreditation and disciplinary actions have been transferred to the federal HEC. Sindh HEC Chairman Professor Dr. SM Tariq Rafi told HE. In a letter sent to CK Executive Director Prof. Dr. Ziaul Haq on September 7 and a detailed reply consisting of 48 points, it has demanded that Sindh’s position along with the draft framework be presented to the federal cabinet so that the cabinet can be informed about the legal and constitutional objections of the province before the decision. The Sindh HEC has clarified that the federation has the power to set national standards for higher education, however, the responsibility for establishing universities in the provinces, NOC, inspection, supervision and implementation of laws rests with the respective provincial higher education commissions. The proposed framework contradicts the consensus decisions of the Council of Common Interests and the Sindh Higher Education Commission Act, 2013. Sindh HEC took a stand that under Section 22 of the Sindh Higher Education Commission Act 2013, the Federal Higher Education Commission Ordinance 2002 has ceased to apply to Sindh. This legal status has not been challenged in any court or forum for more than a decade. The Federal HEC should explain under which legal provision it wants to extend such a regulatory system to Sindh whose entire constitutional basis is laid on the Ordinance of 2002 which has been repealed in Sindh. The letter questioned how the two systems would work if the decisions of the federal and provincial bodies were different. Sindh HEC said that purely federal system is not a new or untested concept. This system existed in Sindh from 2002 to 2013, when there was neither a provincial commission nor a provincial inspection body. The draft framework itself describes this period as one of rapid and largely unregulated expansion of the higher education sector. The Sindh HEC also expressed concern over the absence of a clear regulator for colleges. Sindh HEC also objected to the formation of the task force that prepared the draft, saying that federal institutions, universities and international experts were included in it, but no provincial higher education commission, government of Sindh or any institution based in Sindh was represented. Asking for feedback after the draft is complete is not a substitute for meaningful involvement in the preparation phase.