SWABI: The police have asked the district administration to close the Shaheed Benazir Bhutto Women University, Swabi, for a lack of security in the wake of the Jan 20 Charsadda university attack, which claimed 21 lives.

Another local varsity, the University of Swabi, was closed on Wednesday until Monday with the administration attributing the move to the prevailing foggy weather.

The UoS however asked chairmen, departmental, administrative and sectional heads, and other staff members including faculty members to attend their respective duties as usual.

Swabi DSP Izhar Shah Khan told Dawn that the police had warned the UoS time and again to beef up security on campus.

He said the police also paid several visits to the university, pinpointed flaws in security arrangements, and guided the administration on how to ensure protection of campus.

Mr. Izhar Shah said after the closure of the UoS, the police were worried about the security of the SBBWU located in Gulu Dheri area on Swabi-Topi Road.

“The women university’s security is inadequate, so we’ve informed the administration to close it. There is an urgent need for better security checks on campus to keep students and staff members from any harm,” he said.

The DSP said the police had called for the immediate closure of the women university over dissatisfaction with the poor security arrangements on campus.

Also in the day, DSP Izhar Shah briefed the heads of private and government educational institutions on measures to be taken for their security, especially in the wake of the Bacha Khan University Charsadda terrorist attack.

The police told the participants that directions had been issued to SHOs of all 10 police stations in the district to visit their respective educational institutions and monitor their activities.

They said FIRs would be registered against those failing to meet the police guidelines on security.

The police said they had checked CCTV cameras, lights, barbed wires, height of boundary walls, and other security checks during visits to educational institutions in the district.

They asked the heads of educational institutions to re-check the security of their respective campuses to ensure protection of staff members and students and contact the police if the need arises.

The police said in case of emergency, educational institutions should immediately inform the nearest police stations for help.

On the occasion, the heads of schools and colleges gave the police several proposals on the security of their campuses.

CAR THIEF HELD: The police on Thursday arrested a car thief and seized eight stolen vehicles.

Haidar Khan, who was arrested in a town of Razaar tehsil, told investigators that he had stolen cars in Islamabad, Rawalpindi, Swabi, Hazara and other districts of the province.

The police said intelligence agencies had informed them about the presence of car thief in the area.

They said they had begun investigating the car thief, a resident of Shahmansoor village in Swabi.

Published in Dawn, January 29th, 2016