Open varsity or resign, NA panel tells QAU VC

HEC chairman says semester of all students can go waste if strike continues

ISLAMABAD: After all efforts failed to restart academic activities in the Quaid-i-Azam University (QAU), the National Assembly Standing Committee on Education has categorically directed the vice chancellor to reopen the institute or he can resign, if he cannot.

On the other side, the district administration and police have also prepared a list of 47 students who were considered the bone of contention in resuming the activities at campus in next 24 hours.

The academic activities were suspended in the varsity for the last 15 days, since October 4, when several students launched a strike, blocking the main road leading to the varsity and suspending its transport facility, effectively closing the varsity. They set forward a series of demands including expansion of hostels, busses and restoration of the expelled students.

“We recommend the VC to reopen the varsity, come what may, and if he cannot do so then better he resigns,” said Amirullah Marwat, chairman of the standing committee said at the Ministry of Education.

The Higher Education Commission (HEC) Chairman Mukhtar Ahmed said if the strike continued for one more week, the whole semester of the students could be wasted.

The QAU VC Javed Ashraf expressed complete helplessness and said varsity’s senate will meet on Friday to review about the fate of rusticated and suspended students.

Marwat asked the VC there were over 10,000 students in the varsity and just a few could do whatever they wanted. “By such lethargic attitude a bad precedent is being set that mob of a few could blackmail any university in the country,” he said angrily.

The VC stated that there were host of issues and when he took over the financial deficit was Rs625 million which had come down to Rs400 million due to austerity measures. “How can I purchase more buses, resolve hostel and other issues when I do not have sufficient money,” he said.

To this the HEC chief said about a million rupees were released only for water last year, but to date nothing had been done. “It is a managerial failure just see those who were expelled were living in varsity hostels,” he said which came as a surprise for committee members.

On Tuesday, the district administration and police abandoned plans of an operation against students when a report was shared that several students had lethal arms that could create a trouble.

“You have security, you have force then how come a varsity student carry firearm,” the chairperson of the committee remarked adding that always a timely action against such uprising could stifle probable troubles.

The HEC chief chipped in adding that it was all about ownership. “Nobody in varsities is ready to take ownership.”

He also suggested to the VC that just resolve the issue by inviting parents of those students and show them the videos and evidence of the clashes they were involved in.

Later, the VC of the Federal Urdu University of Arts, Science and Technology (FUUAST) Dr Zafar Iqbal exchanged harsh words with a member Zulfiqar Bhatti when the latter stated that he was involved in corruption and facing national accountability inquiries. “You are a liar and so is your family,” Iqbal said in reply.

Published in The Express Tribune, October 19^th, 2017.