Protesting students choke Murree Road

Gordon College students stage sit-in, blocking main artery for over five hours

RAWALPINDI:

Motorists and commuters faced grueling hardships for hours on Murree Road as teachers and students of Gordon College staged a sit-in on the main artery against the proposed privatisation of the oldest college of the garrison city.

Due to the protest of the students and teachers on Murree Road, which lasted for over five hours, the worst traffic snarl-up was witnessed on the main artery and around Raja Bazaar as police struggled to divert traffic on alternative routes as the protesters refused to end the sit-in till acceptance of their demands.

The protesting students also laid siege to the office of the director of colleges in Rawalpindi, disrupting official work. The city witnessed the worst traffic jam, as the main highway was closed for over five hours.

The protesting students also threatened to lay siege to the Rawalpindi commissioner's office to stop the privatisation of the college.

The students of Government Gordon College boycotted classes and gathered outside the office of the director of colleges. The angry students tried to forcefully enter the office of the director of colleges, which was thwarted by the staff by locking the office’s main door. The protesting students demanded that Director of Colleges Sher Ahmad Satti resigned immediately.

The students then moved to the main Murree Road to stage a sit-in, where the All-Punjab Professors and Lecturers’ Association arranged a sound system to warm the protesting students and teachers.

Some teachers also took classes on main Murree Road as the students took out books from their bags while sitting on the main road.

As soon as Murree Road was blocked, traffic police issued an alert and diverted traffic from Murree Road to alternative routes. Vehicles remained stuck on all the highways and connecting roads including Rawal Road, Raja Bazaar, Liaquat Road, China Market, Iqbal Road, Gwalmandi Road, Murrir Chowk, Chandni Chowk and Dhok Khaba Road for hours.

Addressing the protesters, All-Punjab Professors and Lecturers’ Association General Secretary Jamshed Anjum said that Director of Colleges Sher Ahmed Satti has threatened students and teachers. “We are not even being taken into confidence to file a case in the Supreme Court. The sit-in of students and teachers will continue on Murree Road until the resignation of Director Colleges Sher Ahmed Satti,” he said.

PUPLA President Khurram Shehzad said that they will not allow the educational institution to be handed over to a foreign entity. On the other hand, Director of College Rawalpindi Sher Ahmed Satti said that no notification has been received from the government to privatise or hand over Gordon College to a private entity.

He said that it was clarified to the students that the college handover was not happening on Monday, and despite the assurance, they took to the streets and blocked Murree Road.

He further said that the role of the Rawalpindi administration was very disappointing during the demonstrations. Even though the entire city was blocked, no official of the administration negotiated with the protesters, he said. The citizens were seen trapped in vehicles on roads, he said.

On the other hand, the Rawalpindi administration issued a notification to remove Principal Gorden College Dr Idrees and Vice-Principal Dr Nafees from their posts, while Estate Officer Zeeshan has also been suspended. The Directorate of Colleges Rawalpindi issued a notification in this regard.

Teachers and students alike resented the move to privatise the college and hand over the institution to the Christian missionary after the Lahore High Court adjudicated the case in favour of the Christian mission. Since then, the teachers and the students had been on the roads protesting against the proposed privatisation of the college.

 

Published in The Express Tribune, December 13^th, 2022.