A large number of students and civil society members on Thursday staged a protest demonstration outside the National Press Club against the closure of Quaid-e-Azam (QAU), the eviction of students from hostels and the police crackdown and the arrest of the students.
The protest was called after the city administration launched an operation against the QAU students, the possible deployment of Rangers personnel on the campus.
The protesters said that several students were subjected to brutal beatings, and many were arrested and put behind bars without any charges or FIRs.
They said that female students were forced to vacate hostels in the middle of the night, with no alternative accommodation provided. They said that distressing scenes were witnessed on the campus when frightening female students left the hostels with their suitcases at night.
The protesters demanded that all arrested students must be released immediately and that the university and hostels be reopened so that students from far-flung areas can continue their education.
They also lashed out at the university administration for their crackdown on peaceful students and their eviction from hostels. They said that the university administration was attempting to militarise the campus by deploying law enforcers, which will be resisted to the tooth. They said that the deployment of security forces meant to instill fear in the students, which will prove counter-productive for the educational institution.
The protesters contested the false narrative about student politics and demanded the revival of student unions, the only viable way to unite all ethnicities in Pakistan and provide a platform for the students to present their concerns.
"We will not be silenced by police aggression. We demand justice for our fellow students and an end to the militarisation of our campuses. We demand the release of all arrested students and call on all student organisations, civil society, and progressive associations to join us,” they said.
The students, who represented various organisations at the QAU and outside the university, demanded the immediate release of all arrested students and an end to “securitisation” of the campus
They also demanded that the hostels should be reopened so that the students who have come from far-flung areas could resume their studies. They also demanded that the ban on student unions should be lifted immediately.
Earlier, the QAU administration, with the help of police, dislodged hundreds of students including females from various hostels and closed down the campus for two weeks.
The move came after two student groups clashed on the campus three days back, which left several students injured.
The QAU administration also cancelled the allotment of rooms and formed a 21-member committee to review the criteria for the re-allocation of rooms to the students.
The committee will also take into consideration how a peaceful teaching environment could be created on the campus. The committee will present its recommendations in a week.
Sources said that the police evicted all students including girls residing in hostels along with their belongings.
The sources said that hostel residents especially the girls, most of them hail from various provinces, requested the QAU administration and the police to let them stay in hostels since they had no place to go, but their requests were turned down and their belongings were thrown out on the streets.
Published in The Express Tribune, March 3rd, 2023.
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