KU forms committee to probe allegations of violence on Holi

Committee tasked with looking into the alleged incident, determine whether any wrongdoing took place

KARACHI:

The University of Karachi administration formed a three-member committee on Wednesday to probe allegations of Hindu students being prevented from celebrating Holi on campus.

The development comes after reports emerged that some students were prevented from celebrating the Hindu religious festival, prompting outrage on social media and condemnation from rights groups and activists.

A video clip was shared widely on social media in which Hindu students of the varsity can be heard accusing members of the Islami Jamiat-e-Talaba (IJT) student organisation of forcefully stopping them from celebrating Holi.

The students also alleged in the video that they were subjected to violence by IJT members.

Karachi: Islami Jamiat Tulba disrupts Holi celebrations at Karachi University. Hindu students beaten for playing Holi. pic.twitter.com/elucuKIRhM

— Naila Inayat (@nailainayat) March 7, 2023

The video emerged a day after visuals from a similar incident on the Punjab University campus in Lahore were widely shared on social media.

Read more: No clash in Punjab University on Holi, claims spokesperson

According to the notification issued by the Karachi University administration today, the committee will be headed by Chief Justice (retd) Hasan Feroze as the convener. Other members of the committee include Member Syndicate and Member Provincial Assembly (MPA) Sadia Javed and Assistant Professor in Computer Science Department Mukesh Kumar.

The committee has been tasked with looking into the alleged incident and determine whether any wrongdoing took place, as well as recommending measures to prevent such incidents from happening in the future.

The committee will submit its report to the Vice Chancellor and will recommend actions to be taken against those found involved.

In response to the allegations, KU Vice Chancellor Professor Dr Khalid Iraqi said the university is committed to interfaith harmony. "It is the only university in the country that has a mosque, temple, and church. Our employees had celebrated Holi on the campus a day earlier," he said.

He said that a group of students has requested permission to celebrate Holi on Thursday for which arrangements were being made.

Campus Security Advisor Dr Mueez Khan claimed that no incident of violence against students had been reported in the security office, nor has any such incident been reported in the university clinic.

A similar incident was reported from the University of Punjab two days earlier when members of the Islami Jamiat Talaba (IJT), a right-wing student organisation, allegedly attacked Hindu students who had gathered in the varsity to celebrate Holi.

However, Punjab University the university administration denied that any clash took place. It also ruled that out any of the students were injured, dismissing reports of an attack by IJT members on the Hindu students.