KARACHI, July 31: The Student’s Action Committee (SAC) of the Dow University of Health Sciences (DUHS) want an FIR lodged against the vice-principal for allegedly giving death threats to those students who wanted to meet him to record their protest over the recent increase in fees.

Speaking at a press conference on Tuesday at the Karachi Press Club, student leaders Saad Jilani, Usman Tariq and Atif said that the principal had rusticated a student over the same issue.

Demanding an immediate reversal of the order, they said that such pressure tactics to suppress students and their struggle for their genuine rights must be stopped.

They accused the DUHS administration of wasting huge grants from the Higher Education Commission and other governmental departments on non-developmental expenditures like procurement of new cars for the faculty members rather than providing relief to the students in fees, upgrading transport system for students, developing the sports complex and holding a convocation, which had not been held for the last four years.

They said that the students' representatives had called on the vice-chancellor and inquired about the reason for the fee hike, which was said to be a result of the freezing of funds by the Accountant-General Sindh.

They said that the students suggested that the HEC funds could be utilised to provide relief to the students in this regard, but the administration did not agree.

They alleged that the principal was using pressure tactics against the students.

They charged that after taking charge as the principal, he approved one-way migration for his close relative from the Sindh Medical College to the Dow Medical College, which was against the DUHS rules and regulations.

The student representatives demanded a high-level probe into these issues.—PPI