IJT hooligans will face the music

PU VC says admin, Punjab Police making efforts to nab IJT activists nominated in first information reports
Lahore, Apr 06: The assailants who attacked Professor Dr Iftikhar Hussain Baloch will not go unpunished as the university administration and Punjab Police are actively working to arrest the extremist elements of the Islami Jamiat Taliba (IJT) who have been nominated in various first information reports (FIRs) and have been illegally residing in the varsity hostels, Punjab University (PU) Vice Chancellor Prof Dr Mujahid Kamran said on Monday.

Addressing a meeting of the general body of the PU Academic Staff Association, held at the Institute of Chemical Engineering and Technology New Campus, the VC said the entire PU faculty had displayed exemplary unity with their senior colleague for the ouster of 'hooligans' who had destroyed the sanctity of the oldest seat of learning and held the students and faculty hostage for the past several years.

Assured: He said Punjab Chief Minister Shahbaz Sharif had assured him of his fullest support for ridding the university of unscrupulous elements, and providing complete security to the varsity students and teachers. "The PU administration is sparing no efforts for strengthening its security apparatus through the purchase of walky-talky sets, surveillance cameras and recruitment of retired SSG guards to ward off any recurrence of unfortunate incidents like the attempt on Prof Iftikhar Baloch's life," the VC said. The meeting was attended by Pro Vice Chancellor Dr Jamil Anwar, Registrar Prof Dr Muhammad Naeem Khan, PUASA President Prof Dr Mehr Muhammad Saeed Akhtar, General Secretary Javed Sami and a large number of faculty members.

Acting: Earlier, the PUASA president said the IJT activists had been roaming around in the university as if they 'owned the place', adding that the entire PU faculty had boycotted classes and no academic activities were being held since the attack on Prof Iftikhar. He said the faculty would continue its protest until the culprits involved in the attack were arrested and brought to justice, adding that the daily meeting of the general body would be regularly held to review the day-to-day progress made in regards to the efforts being made for the arrest of IJT activists nominated in the FIR. He said a committee of the varsity's senior-most teachers had been constituted for contacting the legal fraternity and civil society activists for seeking active support in the ongoing campaign against the wanted elements of the IJT. Later, members of the PUASA staged a protest march from the Institute of Chemical Engineering and Technology to the New Campus Canal Bridge, with participants carrying placards and banners against the IJT. They were then joined by students and members of civil society at the Charing Cross, where they protested against the IJT. Representatives of the Aurat Foundation and Awami Jamhouri Forum also participated in the protest to show solidarity with the varsity teachers. Daily times

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PU teachers continue classes' boycott
Lahore: The Punjab University (PU) teachers on Monday observed a boycott of classes and staged a peaceful demonstration against the hooliganism by the Islami Jamiat-e-Talaba (IJT), which had left a faculty member injured.

The demonstration started soon after the general body meeting of the PU Academic Staff Association. The teachers, carrying placards and banners, chanted slogans against the IJT and demanded of the government to ensure immediate arrest of those involved in the recent violence at the PU.

The general body reiterated its stance of continuing the boycott of classes till the arrest of the IJT members involved in injuring the faculty member and damaging his office and vehicle. Later, dozens of PU teachers, along with members of the civil society, staged a peaceful demonstration at the Faisal Chowk outside the Punjab Assembly building and recorded their anger over the IJT violence at the PU.

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Sudanese ambassador meets PU VC
Lahore: Ambassador of Republic of Sudan Mohammed Omer Musa called on Punjab University (PU) Vice Chancellor Prof Dr Mujahid Kamran in his office on Monday and held discussion for further enhancement of existing academic cooperation to benefit fully from each other's experience and expertise in the field of education and research. According to a press statement, welcoming the dignitary, the VC observed that Pakistan and Sudan enjoyed close ties based on commonality of culture and religion. He said that there was a need to realise full potential of the existing academic and business relations between the two brotherly countries.

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UHS employees continue protest
Lahore: Empluyees of the University of Health Sciences continued their hunger strike and protest demonstration for acceptance of their demand of regularisation here at the Charing Cross on Monday. They were holding banners and placards inscribed with their demands and raising slogans against the UHS administration for denying them right to regularisation. They alleged that Dr Asad Ashraf, chairman of Chief Minister's Task Force on Health, was reluctant to support the employees in their just demand of regularisation as the UHS authorities were pouring favours on his relatives. They urged the provincial government to direct the UHS authorities to implement its orders of regularization of employees from grade 1 to 15, which has already been implemented in all other government institutions. The news

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Students caught cheating in exam
Toba tak singh: Faisalabad Board of Intermediate and Secondary Education Controller Zafar Iqbal on Monday raided two examination centres of ninth class (matriculation) annual examination and caught several students cheating. He handed over all of them to police.

Students caught cheating at the Government Gigh School, Chak 178 GB, include Muhammad Shahbaz, Zafar Iqbal, Muhammad Afzal, Anas Raza, Muhammad Ashfaq and Muhammad Saeed while candidates caught from the centre of Government High School, Chak 160 GB, are Muhammad Afzal, Ahmad Ali and Muhammad Kashif.

He transferred superintendents and all supervisory staff of the two centres and also wrote to education department to take action against them. Dawn

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