KU chemistry professor Dr Riaz missing since last night, says family

Varsity's official claims the professor supported PTM and had planned to attend their forthcoming rally

KARACHI: Dr Riaz Ahmed, an applied chemistry professor at University of Karachi, has been missing since last night, his family said on Saturday.

The professor, who led the department at the varsity, reportedly contacted his wife at 8pm last night. The family says that the professor, who left for his house located in the PECHS society at around 9pm, is missing ever since and his cell phone is turned off.

Talking to The Express Tribune, medical officer at KU clinic Dr Hassan Auj said Dr Riaz supported Pashtun Tahaffuz Movement (PTM) and was believed to have plans to attend the party's gathering scheduled for Sunday in Karachi. "He was an activist and he wanted to go to the PTM rally," Auj added.

Auj said he himself supported the movement and would roam around the campus wearing PTM's signature cap. On Wednesday, he added, a middle aged man came to his clinic in the varsity and called for such activities to be stopped.



Meanwhile, president of the teachers' union professor Jameel Kazmi confirmed that professor Riaz is missing. Kazmi further said if Dr Riaz had committed an offence, abducting him wasn't the way to deal with the issue.

He announced the varsity faculty will stage a protest tomorrow against the alleged abduction, and hold results of M.Phil and PhD entrance tests.

In April 2017, Ahmed and another faculty member Mehar Afroze Murad were briefly detained by law enforcers in connection with the late Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM) leader Dr Hasan Zafar Arif.

In October of the same year, another professor of KU, Dr Muhammad Ismail of the Islamic Studies department was picked up reportedly by the law enforcers, and was released 18 days later.