LARKANA: Teaching at the Govt Degree College, Larkana, has almost stopped and students’ attendance drastically dropped as the two-month old standoff between its principal and faculty continued on Tuesday and the Sindh Professors and Lecturers Association (SPLA) held its general body meeting to intensify its campaign for the removal of Principal Prof Ghulam Serwar Qureshi.

Leaders of the Larkana and Qambar-Shahdadkot districts SPLA speaking at the meeting accused Prof Qureshi of being incompetent to manage the institution’s administrative affairs and having indulged in corrupt practices. They also accused him of crude attitude towards the faculty and having spoiled the academic atmosphere at the college.

They urged the education secretary to remove the principal and institute an inquiry into alleged mismanagement and corrupt practices on his part.

After the meeting, protesting SPLA members carrying banners and placards and raising slogans in support of their demands marched through various thoroughfares and finally converged on the Jinnahbagh roundabout, where SPLA’s Larkana district chief Prof Bashir Chandio, Syed Imtiaz Shah, Lal Kalhoro, Malhar Sindhi, Prof Liaquat Ali Abro and other leaders of the association delivered speeches.

They regretted that the SPLA had been holding protests for two months but the authorities concerned had adopted an indifferent attitude towards the issue. They threatened to widen the scope of their protest if appropriate action was not taken to resolve it.

On his part, Prof Qureshi rejected the faculty’s allegations and accused them of not discharging their duties efficiently. “They are also not ready to hold negotiation to sort out the issues relating to teaching and learning process,” he said. He held the faculty responsible for a 90 per cent decline in students’ attendance at the campus due to their protest. “They have spoiled the academic atmosphere and are not taking regular classes,” he said. About 1,600-1,700 students had been attending the college before the faculty started the protest, he said.

Published in Dawn, January 20th, 2016