LAHORE – Representative bodies of teachers and employees at the University of the Punjab have formed a Joint Action Committee (JAC), alleging administrative injustices, abuse of authority and retaliatory actions against faculty members and staff.
The decision was taken at a meeting held on Friday at the Committee Room of the Punjab University Executive Club. Representatives of the Academic Staff Association (ASA), the Punjab University Administrative and Technical Staff Association (PUATSA), the Officers Welfare Association, the Punjab University Librarians Organisation, and the Punjab University Stenographers Association attended the meeting.
According to a statement issued after the meeting, the committee unanimously elected Prof Dr Sardar Asghar Iqbal as chairman, Chaudhry Basharat Mahmood as president, Tayyab Ejaz Khan as secretary general and Prof Dr Kamran Abid as convener.
The vice chairmen are Prof Dr Muqeet Javed Bhatti, Chaudhry Gulfam Nasir, Dr Aslam Hayat and Rana Intikhab Alam. The media committee comprises Prof Dr Abdul Rehman Niazi, Prof Dr Kamran Mirza, Dr Majid Ali, Tanveer Awan, Hammad Butt and Azhar Iqbal Baloch.
In the statement, the JAC alleged that the university administration had ignored the concerns of faculty members and employees while adopting discriminatory and retaliatory measures against those who raised their voices. It further claimed that fear and intimidation had become tools of governance within the institution.
The committee warned that it would launch a coordinated protest movement across the university if its concerns were not addressed. It said the campaign could include demonstrations, sit-ins, pen-down strikes, class boycotts and other lawful forms of protest.
The JAC demanded an immediate end to what it described as retaliatory actions against faculty members and employees, the resolution of pending issues, an end to discriminatory practices, and the restoration of transparency, merit, and the rule of law in the university’s administration.
The committee also announced that the press conference previously scheduled by the Academic Staff Association would now be held jointly under the banner of the Joint Action Committee. It said the briefing would present its stance on alleged administrative and financial irregularities, the challenges facing the university and its future course of action if its demands remained unmet.
The university administration had not issued a response to the committee’s allegations at the time this report was filed.
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