LAHORE: The Punjab government has appointed Prof Dr Zakria Zakar as provisional vice chancellor of the Punjab University.

“We have finalised the name of Dr Zakar, dean of faculty of behavioural and social sciences of the PU for provisional vice-chancellor. The decision has been taken in the light of the higher court’s verdict to appoint one of three short-listed candidates. Dr Zakar was second in the list after Prof Zaffar Mueen Nasar,” Punjab Higher Education Minister Syed Raza Ali Gillani told Dawn on Saturday. He said a notification in this regard would be issued in a couple of days.

Prof Nasar on Friday resigned from his post, apparently over the issue of the university land which the Punjab government wanted to give to a religious party. An official source said the chancellor had accepted Prof Nasar’s resignation.

Prof Zakar had joined the PU 28 years ago as lecturer. He did his PhD in Public Health from Germany in 1998. He has more than 20 years of professional experience in areas of quantitative, qualitative and operational research.

According to the university calendar, the senior most professor should be appointed as acting VC. Prof Taqi Zahid Butt is the senior most professor in the PU.

Published in Dawn, January 7th, 2018