Plea against hostel fee for lockdown months
Once complete, the institution’s infrastructure spread over 100 kanals in Lahore’s Jubilee Town will house a teaching college, postgraduate training and research centre, a teaching hospital, separate hostels for boys and girls and residence facility for the staff. SCREENGRAB
The Islamabad High Court (IHC) on Friday directed the Higher Education Commission chairman to hear the complaints of the students regarding coronavirus SOPs, online education and universities charging hostel and transport fee and submit a reply within two weeks.
IHC Chief Justice Ather Minallah adjourned the hearing of a petition filed by students of seven universities against online classes and extra fees, directing the HEC Chairman Tariq Banuri to issue a written order after hearing the students’ representative.
The petition stated that many students could not attend online classes due to lack of access to internet. Moreover, they feared being affected in grades given on the base of class discussion being held online. The plea further stated that university hostels were closed but they were still being charged hostel fee. After the closure of hostel, distant students had no choice but to return homes in far flung areas. The petition seeks to stop universities from charging fees for services such as hostel and transport in addition to tuition fees.
Justice Minallah was hearing the petition filed by the students of International Islamic University Islamabad, National University of Modern Languages, Quaid-i-Azam University, University of Engineering and Technology Taxila, Iqra University and other universities.
The HEC's lawyer sought more time to file a reply, on which the court directed the HEC and the Ministry of Federal Education and Vocational Training to submit the reply within two weeks.
Published in The Express Tribune, August 22nd, 2020.