LAHORE: The Punjab government has asked the Punjab University (PU) administration to hand over its prime two kanals land to a religious party, according to a report by a private media outlet.
Adviser to Chief Minister Khwaja Ahmed Hassaan held a meeting with the university authorities at 90 Shahrah-i-Quaid-i-Azam and forced them to let the government acquire the land without any delay.
PU Vice Chancellor Zaffar Mueen Nasar, four deans, resident officers 1 and 2, the treasurer and the director of sports were present.
The Punjab government had acquired the land of a seminary at Chauburji to accommodate the route of the Orange Line Train project, and now forced the university to give up its land to compensate the seminary.
The PU Academic Staff Association recently passed a resolution against the purposed land plan. They said under the PU Act, the land only could be used for academic purposes.
Last week, a meeting of all PU deans and principals of constituent colleges was held under the chairmanship of the VC Dr Nasar for a syndicate meeting they demanded that Chief Minister Shahbaz Sharif stop snatching the PU land and instead, construct the mosque on the premises of other government offices on Lake Road (next to Madrassatul Banat).
In the last decade, the government has taken over 33 kanals from PU for the expansion of Pekhewal Mor, the Baba Ground (a.k.a. Chishtia High School Ground) next to the Punjab Secretariat, over 305 kanals for Maulana Shaukat Ali Road, eight-kanals for the Orange Train and now eyes on two kanals more for the same project.
The provincial government had also promised to build two underpasses and paying Rs300 million to the PU for the acquired land. Despite the passages of years, the government has not fulfilled its promise.
The government also violated the agreement regarding construction of the commercial market on both sides of the road.
Teachers urged the chief justice to take suo moto of ‘snatching’ of the PU land.