A Sindh government notification issued Thursday night said the decision to keep schools, colleges and universities closed on Friday was taken to save students from any inconvenience that may be caused by possible traffic disruption on the protest day being observed against blasphemous cartoons published in the Western media.
In the meantime, all educational institutions in the city had observed a complete closure on Thursday under a government directive.
During the day, registrars of the University of Karachi and the Federal Urdu University of Arts, Science and Technology and a couple of private universities in separate notices declared Feb 17 as holiday.
To show integrity and solidarity with the Muslim Ummah and to translate deepest sorrow and sentiments of protest on the publication of the blasphemous cartoons, the KU will be closed on Feb 17. Examinations scheduled for Friday have also been postponed and new dates would be announced later on, said a KU notice.
The Dow University of Health Sciences had already notified on Feb 14 that in order to express solidarity with public sentiments and to express indignation over the repeated publication of blasphemous sketches, the varsity and its affiliated units would remain closed on Feb 17.
However, according to the DUHS registrar, the closure will not affect facilities accorded to patients at the Ojha Institute of Chest Diseases and affiliated hospitals of the Dow and Sindh medical college.
The Catholic Board of Education and All Private Schools Management Association (APSMA), Sindh, had also announced during the week that educational institutions affiliated with them would remain closed as marks of protest against the blasphemous cartoons.
In the meantime, a meeting of APSMA held on Thursday decided that private schools of his group in Sindh would observe a ‘Pledge Day’ on Feb 20.
The students, on this day, would pledge to get themselves equipped with the highest quality education in order to deny the imposition of Western culture and thoughts in the future, said a press release.