Police baton charge university teachers

SSP Yasir Afridi said protestors did not open roads despite repeated warnings

PESHAWAR:

Police on Monday baton charged teachers and clerical staff of the public sector universities who started their protest march under the banner Federation of All Pakistan Academic Staff Association (FAPASWA) to press for their demands.

Teachers, clerical staff and class four employees of universities started their march from University of Engineering (UOE) and reached the provincial assembly where they closed the Khyber Road for all types of vehicular traffic.

Police asked the protesting teachers to open the road but when they did not open it, police started baton charging them and used tear gas shells against them.

Dozens of protesters and teachers were also arrested and shifted to nearby police station.

SSP Operation Yasir Afridi told media that the protesting teachers were repeatedly given warnings but when they did not oblige then the police had no option.

On the other hand FAPASWA has given a complete strike call against the incident. They demanded the release of all employees and teachers arrested by the police.

FAPSWA and All Universities Employees had demanded the removal of vice chancellors. The decision was taken in an emergency meeting of the two associations.

For the past three days university teachers are protesting against the administration of University of Peshawar. They blamed the provincial government and Higher Education Commission for creating problems and demanded that the education of medical allowance, transport allowance and house rent was not acceptable to them because this was part of their salaries and deducing it was against the law.

They demanded the Higher Education Commission to withdraw its notification in this regard and that the government should increase budget for the provincial universities in order to help it overcome the financial crisis it is passing through.

University teachers also criticised Special Assistant to the Chief Minister on Higher Education and Information Kamran Bangash for terming teachers as “terrorists.”

Published in The Express Tribune, June 1^st, 2021.