MINGORA: After rejecting his notice to ban the mingling of girl and boy students on and off campus, the Swat University has suspended its chief proctor, Mohammad Bilal, over the ‘unlawful’ move.

The university’s public relations officer, Aftab Ahmad, told reporters here that the issuance of notices on policy, academics or other administrative affairs without the permission of the vice chancellor was illegal.

“No notification can be issued without the approval of the VC. The notice issued by the chief proctor to ban the mingling of male and female students was not approved by the VC. The chief proctor issued and displayed it on his own and against the rules,” he said.

Suspends chief proctor over ‘unlawful’ act, orders inquiry

Anotice issued by the chief protector of the Swat University’s Kanju Township campus stated the girl and boy students were not allowed to sit or walk together on the campus and outside.

It added that if students male or female were found together on campus, they would be fined from Rs50 to Rs5,000 each and that their parents would be summoned to discuss the matter.

The PRO said the university provided equal opportunity of education to both male and female students and did not believe in ‘gender discrimination.’

“As there is no separate university for women in Swat, our university encourages women from across the region to get modern education on its campus,” he said.

Aftab Ahmad said Vice Chancellor Dr Jehan Bakht had formed a three-member committee to probe the matter after suspending the chief proctor.

“The fate of the chief proctor will be decided in light of the recommendations of the probe committee,” he said.

The PRO said the proctor was authorised only to maintain discipline on campus.

Published in Dawn, April 17th, 2016