Raise in Peshawar University Fee Results In Student Strikes

A crack down launched against peaceful rally of university students by Peshawar Police resulted in injuring five students and arrest of 28 students. The strike was demonstrated because of a recent raise in tuition fee in Peshawar University. The students held a peaceful rally on Thursday in front of university administration block when police baton charged. The orders of baton charge took by police were on command of chief security officers. The protest was called by Muttahida Talaba Mahaz and student wings of Awami National Party (ANP), Pakistan People’s Party (PPP), Islami Jamiat Talaba (IJT), Muslim Students Federation (MSF) and Pukhtoon Students Federation (PSF) were participants of the protest. The university admission fee was raised from Rs27, 500 to Rs32, 500 and hostel fee was increased to Rs33, 000. The students told press that the current chief security officer has registered FIR’s against students and not allowing them to attend examination. The students were demonstrating protest in Pearl Lawn of University, when the police started this brutal act of baton charge instead of listening to their demands. According to Malakand Students Society President Waleed , the new chief security is charging huge amount of Rs0.4 million monthly salary from the university and he has turned the university into a cantonment. He stated ““Today, everyone has seen the performance of the chief security officer who ordered police to use baton charge against the students.”

Saleem Ahmad from the department of international relations, Hasnain from the agriculture department, Farooq from the department of management sciences, Abbas from computer science department and Shah Fahad from media studies are the names of five students who were injured during the protest. The reason students told the press for protest was huge raise in tuition fee for MPhil and PhD students. Islami Jamiat-e-Talaba Peshawar University Campus Information Secretary Attiqullah stated to press that “the university is taking Rs48,000 in admission fee for masters while on self-finance basis, the university is taking Rs8,400 heavy from the poor students,”

On the other hand the university officials put forward their stand as the fee has been raised after two years and that the students should have not protested for it. University Spokesperson Ali Imran Bangash told media persons that the rooms occupied by student in hostel are not legal. Almost 300 rooms were restored back from this illegal occupation of students after many efforts. According to him the protest was not called for fee deduction instead it was a reaction of this action against illegal room eviction.  He told the press that “One belongs to the IJT and the other to the PSF. Their aim is to find a way to blackmail the administration whilst using innocent students as a shield.”. He said that the protest was blackmailing tactic adopted by the students against the university. He held his stand that the baton charge was provoked by the students as they were attacking the administration block and they had no option left to disperse them.