Prof Khan’s abduction : Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa teachers call off strike

End of the strike is partial, meetings to press for release of kidnapped professor to continue, says FAPUASA.

PESHAWAR: The Federation of All Pakistan Universities Academic Staff Association (FAPUASA) on Thursday announced that they were calling off the boycott of classes in all public sector universities of Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa from November 29.

FAPUASA Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa Chapter’s President Dr Fida Mohammad told reporters on Thursday that teachers were calling off their strike and boycott of classes, adding that the end of the strike will be partial and they will continue their meetings to press for the release of the kidnapped professor.

The end of strike came following a meeting of teachers with the Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa Governor Owais Ahmed Ghani, who is the chancellor of all public sector universities in the province, on Wednesday.

“We are calling off our strike after the demands of parents and keeping in view the future of the students,” Fida said. “However, we are not satisfied with the steps that the government has taken to ensure the release of Islamia College University’s (ICU) Vice-Chancellor Professor Ajmal Khan.”

Dr Fida said that they will hold Ghani responsible if anything happened to the kidnapped vice chancellor of the ICU. He also warned that if there was no progress in Khan’s release, the teachers will give another call for strike within two weeks.

Professor Ajmal Khan, who is also a cousin of Awami National Party chief Asfandayar Wali Khan, was kidnapped on September 7. Two months later, his captors released a video, showing him saying that the militants will execute him by November 20, if the authorities did not meet their demand of freeing their accomplices.

Published in The Express Tribune, November 26^th, 2010.