KARACHI, June 3: After a long and fiery debate on allegations of irregularities in the computer science department’s selection board process, Karachi University’s syndicate has approved the appointments in the department without a single note of dissent.

However, the vice chancellor, presiding over the meeting, assured the members raising objections to the selection board process that he would look into the complaints of two candidates.

A major part of the debate, according to sources, was directed at the media which some members alleged was maligning the institution.

Responding to the accusations of irregularities in the computer science department’s selection board process, the vice chancellor tried to convince the forum that transparency had been maintained in the process and he issued appointment orders of seven candidates after going through the relevant documents, the sources added.

At this, one member questioned that how seven candidates had been appointed against five vacancies of assistant professor in the department. No satisfactory reply could be given to it, said the sources.

The vice chancellor also promised that complaints related to the computer science department’s Hussain Saleem and Zamin Ali Khan as well Hassan Raza currently serving as lecturer at the commerce department would be looked into.

The syndicate rejected a proposal regarding the grant of Rs10,000 PhD allowance to non-teaching staff, who had acquired a doctorate degree while serving at the university.

It approved the appointment of Prof Dr Farkhanda Barq as chairperson of the geography department after receiving a report from the dean of science faculty in her favour.

As for the general history and Islamic history departments, both of which had been without chairpersons for some years due to some conflict among teachers, the syndicate set up two separate committees to look into their cases. Both committees would be headed by Senator Abdul Haseeb Khan, a member of the KU syndicate.

The sources said that members of the committee for the Islamic history department were Prof Dr Nighat Siddiqui and Prof Dr Abuzar Wajidi. Prof Dr Mohammad Iqbal Choudhary of the HEJ Research Institute for Chemistry with Prof Dr Nighat Siddiqui were members of the committee for the general history department, they added.

It also came to the notice of the body that the director-general of the Khan Institute of Biotechnology and Genetics Engineering and director of Institute of Sustainable Utilisation of Halophyte were enjoying privileges of both the tenure track system and the university’s grade 22, which, according to some members of the syndicate, was against the university rules.

The statutes of the tenure track system and grade 22, which were recommended by the Higher Education Commission, were approved with some amendments.

According to a university press release, the syndicate decided that the written tests for appointment of lecturers would be taken by the National Testing Service.