LAHORE: The Punjab University administration has filed an application with the cyber crime wing of the Federal Investigation Agency requesting it to trace those behind the fake Facebook accounts of Vice Chancellor Dr Mujahid Kamran.

The varsity rushed to the FIA after a post made in two Facebook accounts of Mr Kamran said: “I am delighted to announce that I got another term of four years as Vice Chancellor of the University of Punjab. Thanks to all of my supporters and haters who inspired me to do best.”

As Mr Kamran started receiving congratulatory messages he asked the varsity IT department to lodge a complaint with the FIA and get his fake IDs blocked.

“The PU VC is not using any Facebook ID. Someone else is misusing his name and posting pictures and other stuff which can be misleading for those following him on the Facebook,” PU spokesman Khurram Shahzad told Dawn on Saturday.

He said the FIA had been informed that some emails sent to people using Dr Kamran’s name were also fake. “The FIA has been requested to trace the person(s) involved in running the fake Facebook accounts and get them blocked,” he said.

Meanwhile, Chief Minister Shahbaz Sharif has interviewed Mr Kamran and two others - Zaffar Iqbal Jadoon and Zakria Zakar - for the PU slot.

Kamran has been re-appointed as interim PU VC after his tenure ended on Jan 22. Zakar is the dean of PU Faculty of Behavioural and Social Sciences. Jadoon is a former director of the PU Institute of Administrative Sciences.

The search committee headed by Syed Babar Ali had forwarded the panel of three to the CM.

The chief minister had also interviewed the three panelists each for the slot of the VCs for Lahore College of Women University, Sargodha University and Nawaz Sharif Engineering University, Multan.

Recently, a group of Punjab University teachers held a camp outside the Punjab Assembly for a week, demanding Shahbaz Sharif not to give third term to Dr Kamran as he turned 65 and his appointment would be against the law. Kamran’s supporters also held rallies and requested the CM to give him third term for maintaining ‘apolitical environment’ on the campus.

Published in Dawn, February 21st, 2016