KARACHI, April 22: The academicians have no clue why the student wings of the Muttahida Qaumi Movement and the Jamat-i-Islami decided to turn the academic institutions of the city into a battle-field, particularly when the Intermediate annual examinations are approaching.
They said the negative fallout of the hostilities demonstrated by the two groups — the Islami Jamiat Talaba and All-Pakistan Mohajir Students Organization — against each other in various colleges and universities during the last one week, among other things, could also be a source of anarchy at the examination centres being set up at about 150 educational institutions.
Despite efforts, a number of senior teachers, including principals, were found not ready to be quoted while speaking on incidents of clashes between the two groups of students, but they were prompt in saying that the peaceful academic environment deteriorated as the two groups developed confrontation on the desire of their political patrons.
A college principal said no agreement or restriction on activities of politically-motivated students worked till their party seniors stopped pulling strings.
“We collect affidavit from students, stating that they will not indulge in any political activities during their study, but all goes unheeded as neither the parents take care of this, nor teachers at colleges have the courage to penalize the students for violation,” concluded the principal.
Some senior teachers expressed the view that clashes erupted only as the two groups decided to show their power on streets, without any obvious reasons and proximity to local development. It was all peaceful, as session for Intermediate students completed and students were preparing for examinations, they added.
May be, the groups had planned the muscles flexing only to get their hold in examination affairs at different sensitive centres, but now clashes had nullified all that, as it was all an open war between the two now.
Now their supporters appearing in examinations would surely be perturbed over the fact that they were being watched by their opponents, added the teachers.
Some more principals said that they had been told that since the HSC students were already off in college, it were the infiltrators, who played a havoc and resorted to hooliganism in educational institutions repeatedly.
They urged the political parties to at least spare students in order to save their precious time, even if they had got some agenda to settle their score at Islamabad.
Another group of teachers said that clashes erupted as the two groups were not ready to tolerate each other in any dominating role at educational institutions.
In the meantime, District Officer Education, Prof Haroon Rashid, visited different sensitive colleges and held meetings with principals and senior teachers on prevailing tension at educational institutions and discussed precautionary measures.
The DOE also reported to the provincial education secretary about his assessment of the situation.
He hopes that due to meetings between the two groups in question, mediation and reconciliatory measures by their political figures would bear fruits and situation would be favourable before the commencement of HSC annual examinations on April 24.