KARACHI, Jan 12: At least 15 students were injured when activists of two student groups clashed with each other on the campus of Karachi University on Monday.
Eyewitnesses said the simmering 'cold war' between the All Pakistan Mohajir Students Organization (APMSO) and Islami Jamiat-i-Talaba (IJT) took an ugly turn on Monday as they used rods, sticks and stones against each other.
They told Dawn that some followers of APMSO had roughed up a couple of IJT supporters near the pharmacy department, which triggered a hide-and-seek between the members of the two groups in various departments of the university. Soon a full-blown and open confrontation took place between the two groups in the Arts Lobby.
However, the rangers personnel present on the campus intervened and managed to chase away the students. They had to resort to baton-charge to restore sanity on the campus.
The rangers personnel picked up 25 students belonging to the two sides. These were later released as a consequence of the university administration's efforts.
A senior university official said the rival groups had admitted that what transpired on Monday was based on misunderstandings. They would avoid such a situation in future. The university would remain open on Tuesday, he added.
A Karachi University press release also attributed the fracas, which had peaked at about 1.30pm, to misunderstanding, adding that the rangers personnel had managed to save the day.
Under the directives of the Vice-Chancellor, Dr Pirzada Qasim Raza Siddiqui, the registrar, Dr Muhammad Qaiser, held negotiations with the representatives of the rival groups and asked them to exercise restraint, added the press release.
An official of the Mubina Town Police Station told Dawn that no one had turned up to lodge an FIR as the matter was resolved within the campus premises. Sources at the Abbasi Shaheed Hospital said Jehanzeb, Shiraz, Riaz Ahmed, Ashraf, Kashif and Nabeel Hussain were provided treatment for their injuries. Several students had suffered fractures and their medico-legal reports were issued, hospital sources added.
Meanwhile, in the evening the two groups traded allegations against each other at their respective press conferences, held at the Karachi Press Club. Addressing the press conference, the Chairman of APMSO, Faisal Sabzwari, said the troubles started when some activists of IJT forcibly took out Jehanzeb from his class in the chemistry department and beat him up with sticks and iron rods.
The same treatment was meted out to the APMSO activist called Ashfaq in the department of political science and Mohsin in the mathematics department, Mr Sabzwari added.
He said the three were threatened of dire consequences if they remained associated with the APMSO. Mr Sabzwari observed that an attempt to destroy academic peace had been made at a time when the new vice-chancellor had taken charge of the university affairs.
Acting City Nazim of IJT, Syed Tahir Akbar, claimed that 10 of its supporters were injured when "out-of-campus elements of APMSO" attacked them with iron rods and sticks. He described the university administration's actions as one-sided, adding that 35 IJT activists had been detained. The APMSO was bent upon destroying the academic peace in the educational institutions of the city, added Mr Akbar.