Khyber Pakhtunkhwa colleges vacations

Schedule for vacations
Peshawar, May 28: The Higher Education Department has notified the schedule of vacations for the year 2010-11 for all the government and private colleges within Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. According to a notification issued here today, in plain areas of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa summer vacation shall be observed from June 14 to August 31, 2010 while colleges will remain closed for winter vacations from December 25 to December 31 this year. Similarly, spring vacations in both plain and hilly areas shall be observed from April Ist to April 7, 2011. The order says that in hilly and snowy areas of Khyber Pakhtun khwa summer vacations will be observed from July Ist to July 31, 2010 wile colleges will remain closed for winter vacations from December 25 to February 28, 2011. F.P report

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Pak student wants compensation for '13-month hell' in UK
London: A Pakistani student, arrested in bungled "Operation Pathway" and later on cleared of involvement in an alleged terror plot by the London High Court, has demanded that he should be compensated for his 13-month "hell".

Shoaib Khan, 31, won his appeal against deportation to Pakistan last Tuesday. The Accountancy student was part of the infamous North West 10, the group of Pakistani men arrested last April. None of them was charged by Greater Manchester Police due to lack of evidence. But the government wanted to send them back to Pakistan, arguing that they are still a danger to Britain.

Khan's lawyer, Amjad Malik said that his client's life had been ruined. The Rochdale-based lawyer said, "Shoaib was considered a threat for 13 months. He should be compensated for his lost year of study, tuition fees, and humiliation, which he has to go through for months. He and the other students lost their studies, careers, and livelihood and will carry the blame for the rest of their lives. Whether they were innocent or not, who will believe them [after] a judgement is declared against those who appealed [their deportation]?"

"Shoaib got through, but the march on the road to justice is still on," Ajmal remarked.
Khan will now apply for a new student visa in order to enter Britain in a bid to rebuild his life. Malik also represented Tariq-ur-Rehman and Abdul Wahab Khan, who both lost their appeals against deportation. Eight of them have now been deported.

Ahmed Faraz Khan won his appeal against deportation along with Abid Naseer because of the risk of torture if he returns to Pakistan.

Malik slammed the police for their handling of the anti-terror raids dubbed Operation Pathway. "They should have vetted the evidence through the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) to ensure that they will be able to secure convictions on the basis of the evidence they had."

The Special Immigration Appeals Commission found on secret evidence that some of the men are a threat. However, none were charged.

Police gave in writing that no explosives were found. Being a member or operative of Al-Qaeda is a serious offence in this country and the avenue is open for the home secretary to explore this and bring a trial before the crown court.

In a statement, Greater Manchester Police said, "On Wednesday April 8, 2009, following the receipt of information that required action, officers from the North West Counter Terrorism Unit arrested 12 men under the Terrorism Act."

They were later released into the custody of the UK Borders Agency. "Public safety is always the police's top priority and all information is fully considered and acted upon appropriately to minimise risk to the public." The nation

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Order in medical college admission case reserved
Peshawar: The Peshawar High Court has reserved its order in a review petition filed by a disabled student seeking admission to a public sector medical college against seats reserved for the disabled.

Shehla Qasim, suffering from polio, had been denied admission by the joint admission committee on the basis of recommendations of the disability committee of the medical colleges. The committed had recommended five other students for admission in the 2007-08 session.

The petitioner claimed that the said five students were children of influential people, including doctors, and were suffering from common diseases and had no permanent disability.

The bench comprising Justice Dost Mohammad Khan and Justice Imtiaz Ali heard arguments advanced by the counsel of the petitioner, Khyber Medical College (KMC) and the five students, Zainul Abideen, Sundus Ghani, Amna Ahmed, Mahreen and Faheemullah Khan.

The petitioner claimed that one of the admitted students was suffering from diabetes, another from liver ailment and one from some skin infection.

During the course of proceedings, Justice Dost Mohammad wondered how diabetes could be termed permanent disability by the concerned committee.

The bench observed if the medical colleges had been accepting such wider definition of disability they should also increase the number of such reserved seats. "In future students suffering from common diseases including cardiac ailment, kidney problem, tuberculosis, etc. will also apply on reserved seats for disabled persons on the same ground," Justice Dost Mohammad observed.

The bench further observed that unfortunately certain elements in the health profession were involved in unfair means which had damaged the health delivery system and deserving persons were deprived of their due rights.

The petitioner's counsel, Rehmanullah Khan, contended that under the Disabled Persons (Employment and Rehabilitation) Ordinance, 1981, a person suffering from diabetes could not be termed disabled.

Advocate Ghulam Shoaib Jallay, appearing for the KMC, said the definition of disability was different in the prospectus and the disability committee concerned had recommended them (admitted students) after thorough scrutiny. He argued that the petitioner had appeared in entry tests held in subsequent years and thus she had waived her right to challenge the issue in the court.

He contended that even if the court declared the admission of any of the students as illegal, the petitioner could not be given any benefit because she was at serial No. 14 of the merit list that year.

The bench observed that none of the other affected students had approached the court which meant that they were not aggrieved with these admissions or they had patched up the matter and due to the same reason the benefit, if any, would be given to the petitioner. Dawn

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UoP to start Islamic banking courses
Peshawar: Sheikh Zayed Islamic Centre, University of Peshawar, will start degree courses in Islamic banking from the current academic year. The decision was taken at the meeting of board of governors of the centre, which was held here and presided over by Vice-chancellor Prof Dr Azmat Hayat Khan. The meeting also approved construction of hostel for the female students of the centre.

The degree courses in Islamic banking would not only provide useful experts to the banking sectors, but also generate income for the centre, which is facing financial problems these days.

Director of the Sheikh Zayed Islamic Centre Prof Dr Dost Muhammad said since its establishment in early 1980s, the enrollment of students at the centre had increased from 50 to 500 students.

The director said the centre faced a financial deficit of Rs7.8 million this year. He said the centre reimbursed tuition fees and other charges worth Rs2.2 million to the students hailing from the affected areas.

The government or the Higher Education Commission did not made up for this financial burden of the centre, he added. He said the courses like BS computer sciences and Islamic banking courses would help the centre overcome its economic problem. The news

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