Dozens injured in yet another PU clash

Scuffle began in wee hours of Monday and re-erupted later in the day

LAHORE: At least a dozen students were reportedly injured and several were detained by the police after a clash between two students groups at the Punjab University on Monday.

The clash began in the wee hours of Monday when the Islami Jamiat Talaba (IJT) were preparing to host its event, the Pioneers Festival, at the Electrical Engineering Department of the university. The IJT, Pashtun and Baloch students clashed at the venue of the event at the Electrical Engineering Department. The clash resulted in vandalism of the department and one of the rooms was also set on fire.

 The tensions continued on Monday after the event was postponed and the IJT, in protest, held a sit-in outside the vice chancellor’s office at Punjab University. Another clash occurred when the students belonging to the IJT went to different parts of the varsity and allegedly manhandled several Pashtun students. Resultantly, the students of the rival groups, belonging to Pashtun and Baloch groups, gathered and another clash occurred.

As many as a dozen students were reportedly injured in the clash and were taken to the Jinnah and Shaikh Zayed hospitals. Police used teargas and baton charge to disperse the students. Academic activities were suspended in the Electrical Engineering Department and the gates of the university were closed during the clash. However, academic activities resumed at the varsity throughout the day.

Punjab Higher Education Minister Syed Raza Ali Gillani reached the university in the afternoon and held meetings with the student groups, police officials and the varsity administration. Speaking to the media outside the Vice Chancellor’s office, he assured that PU would remain open as per schedule. He said that the miscreants would be identified through CCTV footage, which would also be shared with the police. He said that the university administration and police would launch separate FIRs against the elements involved in the incident.

“An action plan has been prepared and it was decided that elements, which have caused damage to the university and also assaulted students, will be dealt with as criminals. Additionally, strict measures will be taken at the hostels where action will be taken against anyone staying illegally.” PU Vice Chancellor Prof Dr Zakria Zakir, CCPO Lahore Captain (r) Amin Wains, PU Registrar, SP Iqbal Town and representatives of departments concerned also attended the meeting.



To a question about the previous incident of violence at the university, the minister said, “If action was taken against those responsible back then, the then vice chancellor (Dr Zafar Mueen Nasir) would have remained in his position and the current incident would not have happened.”

In a statement, Punjab University Vice Chancellor Prof Dr Zakria Zakir said that those involved in the incident would be punished without any discrimination. He said the administration would uphold the law at the university at any cost.



“The university administration has evidence with which the perpetrators will be punished.” On the directions of the vice chancellors, a committee had been constituted to review the CCTV footage of the incident to identify those responsible for the incident.

Meanwhile, both groups pointed fingers at each other for the incident and demanded that the administration lodge FIRs against their rivals.

Published in The Express Tribune, January 23^rd, 2018.