LAHORE: The Punjab University (PU) turned into a battlefield on Monday, as varsity security guards thrashed students of the Institute of Mycology and Plant Pathology (IMPP) including girls outside the VC Office.
The students were protesting for their demands when the security guards charged at them and started beating them black and blue. To make things worse, PU VC Dr Mujahid Kamran, the varsity registrar, resident officer and Hall Council Chairman Dr Amin Ather acted like a silent spectator and did nothing to control the situation. According to PU faculty members, it was for the first time that such brutality was shown against the students including girls.
The security guards badly thrashed the girls by slapping them, snatching their dupattas and kicking them with their boots. They violently abused the girls, which was shameless and highly condemnable. PU teachers termed the torture against the students a revenge by the VC, as the students had protested during the visit of British parliamentarian Lord Nazir Ahmed to the PU.
The protest during Nazir’s visit had greatly angered the VC, sources claimed. Several students including girls were injured during the scuffle. Afterwards, Islami Jamiat-e-Talba (IJT) activists joined the students in their protest and tried to express solidarity with the students beaten by the security guards. But the students termed the IJT intervention as hypocrisy and propaganda for cashing in the situation. They requested the IJT activists to leave them alone.
The IMPP students said that the VC’s conduct had reminded them of former president General (r) Pervez Musharraf’s rule and proved that fact that the dignity of females had no value for the VC. The students also condemned the behaviour of Dr Amin Ather and termed him the ‘real man’ behind the incident.
According to details, the students had visited the VC Office to protest against the delay in the awarding of degrees. The students started chanting slogans and wanted a meeting with the VC but the security guards closed the doors of the office. Other administration officials were also present in the office.
The VC asked the students to call off the protest within two minutes but some IJT activists started misbehaving with the VC resulting in a scuffle involving the VC and other administration officials. The IMPP students remained silent but IJT members continued misbehaving with the VC on which Dr Mujahid ordered the guards to control them.
As soon as the scuffle started, the IJT activists fled and the guards started beating the students. Female students including Madiha Khan, Rabia, Lubna, Memoona and Mehwish were severely injured while some male students also fainted due to the beating. The guards used sticks to beat the girls who were seen bleeding from their noses, eyes and mouths after being thrashed.
The varsity administration gave a free hand to the security guards and allowed them to badly thrash the students. The beating continued for nearly an hour and the varsity administration invited the Muslim Town Police to control the situation and a heavy police contingent reached the spot. Former Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) Punjab secretary general Chaudhry Ghulam Abbas, who was on a private visit to the PU, reached the spot and stopped the guards from beating the students.
He condemned the whole incident and also held a meeting with Dr Kamran over the issue. Afterwards, some IJT activists from the Law College tried to join the students but were turned away. IJT Law College activist Faizan threatened journalists and photographers present on the occasion and warned them of dire consequences if they did not stop from covering the incident. “We know better how to tackle everything in the PU than anyone else”, Faizan warned.
A female student said that Dr Mujahid and Dr Amin Ather were responsible for the situation, as Ather had warned them to close their department. She said that IJT activists played a double game today.
PU claims IMPP students issue solved
A special meeting was held by the Punjab University administration after Institute of Mycology and Plant Pathology were beaten outside the VC Office and varsity officials claimed that the issue has been solved while students said that they still have reservations on some issues.
The students said they had an inclusive meeting with the administration and the new faculty members hired by the varsity. They demanded of the administration to sack IMPP Incharge Dr Ghazala Nasim and restore all students expelled from the varsity.
The students said that the newly-hired faculty members were not enough and five teachers could not teach the mandatory courses of all sessions of BSc and MSc (Hons) programmes. Registrar Dr Muhammad Akhtar, Student Affairs Advisor Iftikhar Ahmed Chaudhry, Resident Officers I & II Javed Sami and Malik Muhammad Zaheer and two representatives of the IMPP students also attended the meeting. After detailed discussions, the PU issued a press release stating that it was decided that very soon a senior plant pathologist would join the IMPP as director. Classes at the IMPP would commence from Tuesday, November 2, and all IMPP students would attend the classes. The meeting was informed that five agriculture experts have already been appointed while the remaining graduates would also be appointed faculty members at the IMPP according to rules. The meeting decided that the expelled students would individually apply in writing to the PU VC seeking restoration and tendering their apologies for misbehaving with teachers.
Representatives of the students said that they would end their protest with an immediate effect and gave assurances that they would not resort to any agitation in the future. It was also decided that the students would take their problems to the new IMPP director for their solution.
