FUUAST follies: Students hope campus commotion comes to an end

Court dismisses Dr Iqbal’s petitions; new campus in-charge allegedly beaten up by guards.

ISLAMABAD: After a court dismissed petitions filed by Dr Zafar Iqbal of the Federal Urdu University of Arts, Science and Technology (FUUAST), students, management and the university administration hope sanity will prevail on campus after six months of commotion.

The Sindh High Court (SHC) on Monday dismissed a petition filed by the former FUUAST vice chancellor against decisions taken by the university senate including his removal.

In a meeting on December 20, 2014, the university senate decided to remove Dr Iqbal from the post of vice-chancellor on charges of corruption and other malpractices. On December 22, Dr Iqbal secured a stay order against the decision from the SHC.

Dr Qaiser, the acting vice-chancellor of the university, later moved the courts to get the stay order lifted. The court later allowed Dr Qaiser to continue at his position, after which Dr Iqbal managed to secure another stay order. This cycle has continued ever since.

“It really disturbed the academic atmosphere, not just at the Karachi campus, but also the Islamabad campus,” said a senior teacher at the Karachi campus who was privy to the recent developments.

After the SHC dismissed the petitions, Dr Qaiser assumed charge as acting vice-chancellor as per the senate committee’s decision, while Dr Salman Muhammad was appointed acting in-charge of the Islamabad campus on Monday.

Dr Muhammad has been appointed by Dr Qaiser, who replaced Dr Abdur Razzaq Memon appointed by the previous vice chancellor Dr Iqbal.

When Dr Muhammad arrived at the Islamabad campus as the new campus in-charge along with some other teachers on Monday, he was allegedly beaten up by Dr Iqbal’s guards.

Inayatullah, a teacher from the electrical engineering department, received a head injury, while others suffered minor bruises in the incident.

The varsity has been a centre of controversy for some time.

Land for the new campus was marked two years ago in Chak Shahzad, but the university continues to function from a Rs60-million-a-year rented premises.

Dr Muhammad told The Express Tribune that they had identified over 40 ghost employees hired by the former vice chancellor and other officials. He said a probe would be launched into how they were hired.

Dr Muhammad said that the university had become a hub of corruption and nepotism, while students and academic activities were at the receiving end.

“Research and other activities were disturbed amid this controversy,” he said, adding they were hopeful to turn the situation around.

Shamshad Ali, a Business Administration student, said that every day, there used to be arguments among different groups of teachers and administrative staff.

“Half of the lectures would be spent discussing who the new vice chancellor was and who was in court,” he said. Ali hoped the situation would improve.

In the December 20 senate meeting, Dr Iqbal was also ordered to appear before an inquiry commission headed by retired Justice Haziqul Khairi to probe allegations against him.

The committee has been reactivated after the court decision.

Published in The Express Tribune, May 21^st, 2015.