Miscreants ransack govt school in FB Area

Building owner claims not being paid rent since 2014

KARACHI: A government school in Federal B Area was vandalised on Tuesday by unidentified persons accompanied by police. The suspects ransacked the building and damaged assets, documents and record kept in the school.

According to the school incharge, Tariq Ali, the miscreants who ransacked the school with police claimed to be the owners of the premises and intended to get it vacated.

The school, named Federal Public Government Boys Secondary School, was nationalised around 40 years ago and its owner was being paid rent by the Sindh education department. However, payments were stopped in 2014 and outstanding amount now stands at Rs2.6 million.

The non-payment of rent prompted the owner to approach court, which gave its verdict in owner's favour and ordered the school to be vacated by August 25. However, the government was given a 30-day time to file an appeal.



It has been reported that the owner allegedly with the help of the police stormed the school at around 4pm on Tuesday and threw everything outside.

When students and teachers reached the school next day, they found classrooms and laboratories in utter chaos. They recollected all the furniture and files, put them back to their place and continued with routine classes. "No matter what happens, we will study," said a student, Muhammad Ali.

One of the teachers of the school said it was the same school from where famous cricketer Javed Miandad had received his early education.

"No matter what happens, we will study," said a student. PHOTO: ATHAR KHAN

"When we reached the school on Wednesday morning, we had to bring back our desks and chairs lying outside the building," said another student Fahad. Examination copies and other official documents were also strewn outside the boundary wall and students and teachers had to collect them. The attackers also ransacked the laboratory as all science equipment was thrown outside.

"Wish they would have spared our computers," said an elderly teacher, Masooma. She added that it was not easy to get computers in government schools. "We cannot find the mark sheets of ninth and tenth grade students," she said.

Education Secretary Alia Shahid briefed the education minister about the incident on Wednesday, after which District Education Officer Hamid Kareem was asked to immediately leave his post.

"Wrong picture of the school has been painted by the media," Shahid said, adding that the government had filed an appeal with a higher court against the lower court's order on eviction. "Educational activities have been resumed in the school now and all the stuff thrown out has been put back," she said.



Meanwhile, the sacked officer, Kareem, said as many as five letters had been written since 2015 to the high-ups of education department regarding the issue but the department did not take any action. He claimed that had rent payment not been stopped, the owner would not have won the case.

Similar cases

The Express Tribune has learnt that there are 35 government schools functioning in rented premises in Karachi, where owners are not being paid rent. The schools include 19 primary schools and 16 elementary, secondary and higher secondary schools.

Owners of the land of these schools have not been paid rent since around 2014 and their cumulative dues stand at Rs16.23 million. It has been reported that the payments were stopped on the orders of then-education secretary Dr Fazlullah Pechuho.

Many owners have also initiated legal proceedings against non-payment of rents. It is feared that if verdicts came in favour of the owners, thousands of students would suffer as the schools' land would go in the hands of owners.