KARACHI:
Succumbing to public reaction, the University of Sindh (SU) issued a new notification on Friday regarding the official language for its signboards with the addition of Urdu in it.
“In partial modification of notification No SU/G396 dated April 17, 2018, it is notified for general information of all that the signboards and building titles at the University of Sindh, Jamshoro and all its campuses, in addition to the national language, shall be in multilingual format (Urdu, Sindhi, English),”the new notification reads.
The varsity issued the notification on Tuesday, which stated that all signboards and building titles at SU will be in bilingual format (Sindhi and English). “All heads concerned are requested to take necessary action in this pursuit,” it read.
SU orders campus signboards in Sindhi and English
On Thursday, news of the notification went viral. It lit up television screens and spread like wildfire on social media and sparked political outrage for not including Urdu in the notification.
Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM) - Pakistan’s Leader of the Opposition in the Sindh Assembly Khawaja Izharul Hasan issued a statement saying that the notification signified a mind-set of slavery. “Urdu is our national language,” he said, adding that the notification is against the dreams of Quaid-i-Azam.
Pak Sarzameen Party Chairperson Mustafa Kamal termed the notification a conspiracy against the Sindhi population. The SU management backtracked a few hours later and insisted that they never placed a ban on Urdu at their varsity.
SU’s Vice-Chancellor, Dr Fateh Burfat, had assured that the varsity would issue another notification with amendments.
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