ELEMENTS within the state continue to employ underhanded, even farcical methods to silence their critics. Take the example of a decades-old law degree allegedly obtained by unfair means that the Karachi University’s syndicate cancelled on Saturday. Normally such matters would not elicit much public interest, but when the degree in question reportedly belongs to a high court judge, and the state apparatus was used to prevent a critical syndicate member from attending the meeting, things get a little murky. Syndicate member and KU teacher Dr Riaz Ahmed was reportedly picked up and taken to different police stations in order to prevent him from attending this crucial meeting. After his release, the academic claimed that the cancelled degree belonged to Islamabad High Court judge Justice Tariq Mehmood Jahangiri. The judge is among those members of the bench that have complained of interference in their work by intelligence agencies. Dr Riaz says that he had earlier questioned why a decades-old case was part of the syndicate’s agenda, and that he was prevented from attending the meeting by law enforcers. Both the KU Teachers Society as well as the HRCP have condemned the academic’s detention.

The KU authorities need to explain why this case was dug up now, when the LLB degree in focus dates back to 1991. Is it standard practice at the varsity to revisit degrees that had been issued over three decades ago? Moreover, the Sindh police need to clarify why Dr Riaz was picked up in relation to a case dating back to 2017. There are far too many questions here, in both the KU syndicate’s haste to decide on this degree, and the Sindh police’s detention of the KU teacher. It is highly unlikely that these moves have been made to enforce academic rigour and high standards. Instead, it seems that certain forces are at work to sully the reputation of dissenting voices. All the institutions involved, therefore, need to clear the air.

Published in Dawn, September 3rd, 2024