FAISALABAD, April 12: Confrontation between the National Textile University administration and students has taken a turn for the worse as hundreds of pupils have sought intervention of the higher echelons of government to help solve their issues.

The students have forwarded a letter to the president, the prime minister, parliamentarians, members of Senate and the chief justice of Pakistan with a request to resolve “some critical issues of the academia,” sources told Dawn on Saturday.

The university was closed for an indefinite period by the vice-chancellor on April 8 following a protest drive launched by the students of various departments.

The students took the plea that the NTU administration had failed to get the varsity accredited with the Pakistan Engineering Council despite their repeated requests. The PEC accreditation is highly important for students to have better prospects in the job market.

Sources said the document titled “Desperate times call for drastic measures” drew attention of the government towards the problems the students had been facing owing to ‘incompetence’ of the NTU administration.

A copy of the letter made available to Dawn reads: “We, the students of the NTU, inform you that we have been experiencing a streak of unacceptable incidents. This is because of the university administration’s vested interests which have led to various confrontations.

“Ever since the university has been handed over to the All-Pakistan Textile Mills Association (Aptma), the institute has been on the decline. Aptma is a business organisation and has nothing to do with an educational institution,” they said.

They contended that the administration had been betraying all quarters concerned regarding the varsity’s accreditation with the PEC.

The fact was that the students had submitted several applications to the vice-chancellor to ensure recognition of the institution by the PEC, but he prevaricated over the issue on one pretext or another.

Such an attitude, they said, was leading hundreds of students into a blind alley.

Student Action Committee chairman Khwaja Waqas Siddique confirmed that a letter had been sent to several parliamentarians for their support for the academic cause.

Instead of resolving the issue, he said, the NTU administration closed the institution for an indefinite period which was deplorable.

He said the students would not budge an inch from their stance and had planned to stage protest demonstrations in front of parliament, the president and prime minister’s houses and other important places.

Saying that many student associations were supporting their stance, Waqas requested the incumbent officials to take personal interest in the case and solve the genuine demands of the students.