HYDERABAD: Sindh University Vice Chancellor Dr Fateh Mohammad Burfat held talks with leaders of the Joint Action Committee (JAC), comprising organisations of teachers and other employees, to discuss a set of demands. However, the two sides failed to hammer out a deal to end JAC’s protest campaign that has entered its 51st day on Monday.

After the talks, JAC resumed its protest and the VC left for Islamabad saying that “talks did not fail ... my doors are open to negotiations”. The VC told Dawn after the talks that most of the demands were accepted. The one, calling for removal of [SU] registrar had some legal implications in view of the 2017 decision of syndicate that states “registrar will not be removed under pressure of any organisation”, he added.

The JAC alleges corruption, moral turpitude, financial irregularities, posting junior faculty as registrar, illegal transfers and postings, 430 unfair appointments etc and demands certain rights of workers, besides removal of the registrar, Ameer Abro.

Earlier in the day, when protesting employees were holding a demonstration outside the administration block, the VC invited JAC leaders to talks. Dr Nek Mohammad Shaikh, Dr Arfana Mallah, Sajjad Hussain Shah, Manzoor Ali Panhwar and Mohammad Ali Ghanghro discussed the issues and [14] demands with him for about an hour. When they came out of the VC’s office, they said he turned down the demand for removal of the registrar.

The protesters marched to the first floor of the administrative block and staged a sit in outside VC’s office.

Published in Dawn, October 22nd, 2019