End of tenure: Dr Kamran might not get an extension

Official says the vice chancellor failed to take action against professors.

LAHORE:

Punjab University’s Vice Chancellor Dr Mujahid Kamran might not get an extension in his tenure, a Higher Education Department official told The Express Tribune.

Dr Kamran’s tenure ends in January 2012.

“Only two months are left. The Selection Board has not met so far to discuss the extension,” the official said. Typically, a decision for extension in tenure is taken three months before tenure ends, he told The Tribune.

The official, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said that Kamran had yet to take action against former and current faculty members of the Institute of Communication Studies (ICS) who had been found guilty, by an inquiry committee of the Punjab University, of tampering with results and admissions.

“The chief minister has concerns about the current administration,” the official said.

Dr Affira Hamid, an ICS faculty member had written an application on June 21, 2010 calling attention to violation of PhD programme rules. She had alleged that Dr Mugheesuddin Shaikh, the then dean of Behavioral and Social Sciences, and Dr Ahsan Akhtar Naz, the ICS director, had enrolled two students – Shafiq Kamboh and Naveed Chaudhary, who are also faculty members – in MPhil second semester despite failing fist semester exams. She had also alleged other irregularities including some admissions decisions. She had mentioned, in particular, the case of an IJT nazim, expelled from the varsity in 2005, who was re-admitted by Dr Naz.

The VC had appointed Dr Khan Ross Masood, a senior faculty member, to look into the allegations. Dr Masood submitted a report on July 27, 2010, in which he held that Dr Shaikh and Dr Naz were guilty of tampering with the results. He also recommended that they be dismissed from their posts immediately. Dr Masood also suggested that the VC should examine the entire record of the ICS.

Recommendations of the inquiry report, however, were not implemented. The matter was later taken up in the PU Syndicate meeting last year. “It has been more than a year and no action has been taken. We have heard that some of the VC’s aides favour the faculty members [involved] so he hasn’t taken any action so far,” the HED official maintained.

Dr Shaukat Ali, head of Physics Department and a member of the PU Syndicate, said, “Officials of HED have been attending Syndicate meetings and know that nobody is being favoured. Justice will be done”. He, however, did not comment on the matter of VC’s extension.

Dr Mujahid Kamran was not available for comment.

Published in The Express Tribune, November 3^rd, 2011.