Ammar was fired for fanning ‘extremist’ ideas: PU spokesman

— Says Ammar Ali Jan pressurised admin for regular appointment without competing for the seat

LAHORE: A day after Pakistan Today published a report of protest staged by students against the ‘dismissal’ of Dr Ammar Ali Jan, a former assistant professor of the Punjab University (PU), the varsity spokesman said Dr Ammar was barred from teaching as he was “fanning anti-state, ethnic and extremist ideas after targeting students and not giving joining as per appointment orders”.

In a press statement released here on Wednesday, the spokesman said Dr Ammar had not been fired from the job since he was not a regular employee of the university in the first place but had “pressurised the administration in the past for his regular appointment without participating in the competition for the seat”.

“It is the policy of the incumbent administration to not make appointments without advertisement and since January, no appointment has been made in violation of the prescribed rules,” said the spokesperson.

On Saturday, Dr Ammar Ali Jan claimed that his services were terminated by the administration due to his “increased engagement” with students groups, however, the varsity’s vice chancellor had denied the charge.

The spokesman further said that several students on the condition of anonymity and some media persons had reported to the varsity administration that Dr Ammar was “provoking some targeted students to participate in activities which may lead to damaging peace and tranquility on campus”.

“Dr Ammar was reportedly making efforts to deepen ethnic divisions in the varsity,” he said and claimed that the former was providing “misleading information” to media representatives that the PU did not give him any salary.

He said that Dr Ammar did not sign his salary bill and did not send it to the relevant staff, which showed that “salary was not his concern”, and added it was astonishing how Dr Ammar was meeting his expenditures without salary. However, the spokesman said, Dr Ammar was paid Rs81,900 for teaching extra classes at the Institute of Social and Cultural Studies.

“After the expiry of Dr Ammar’s three-month-contract, the university offered him a contract once again, but Dr Ammar did not submit his joining report and defied the terms and conditions of the contractual appointment,” he said and added that following the series of events, as per policy in vogue, his appointment order was withdrawn back in January 2018.

The spokesman said that every faculty member of the varsity was enjoying academic freedom and it was nothing but a “lame excuse” that his advocacy for women rights led to his ‘victimisation’.

Earlier, Dr Ammar Ali Jan had told Pakistan Today that the university administration always had a problem with him for highlighting various social issues, including sexual harassment.

It is pertinent to note that following Ammar’s controversial dismissal on Saturday, PU students on Tuesday had staged a protest, which according to the vice chancellor of the university “never took place.”

Contrary to the videos circulating on the social media of the protest, VC Dr Zakaria Zakar had continued denying that students protested or Dr Ammar was ever an employee of the varsity.

Dr Zakar denied that the students protested against the ‘firing’ of the former professor, saying that few students gathered upon “instigation”, but they dispersed when they were told that Ammar wasn’t a university’s employee, to begin with.

“Ammar was troublemaker from the start that’s why he was also fired from Government College University as well,” the VC had said.

He had also said that the university did Ammar a favour by hiring him on contractual basis, adding, “If Ammar wants to succeed as an academic, he should refrain from getting involved in politics.”