Aisha Bawany College remains sealed despite SHC, CM orders
KARACHI:19 september: A scuffle broke out between parents and the management at Karachi's Aisha Bawany College on Monday morning as the institution remained closed despite the orders of Sindh High Court (SHC) and chief minister Sindh to reopen it.
Scores of teachers and students gathered outside the college on Monday to protest against its closure. The college, which was sealed on a civil judge's verdict, continues to remain closed even though the high court and CM ordered its immediate reopening.
Amid controversy of non-payment of rent, officials alongside students, engaged in a scuffle with the spokesperson of Sindh government's education department and Aisha Bawany College's trust exacerbated.
The trust officials maintained that the court's bailiff had ordered the sealing of the court and the college administration is wrongly been accused of sealing the college. Meanwhile, education department officials blamed the trust for sealing the premises.
The dispute between the Aisha Bawany Trust and education department arose over non-payment of the rent amount, which had allegedly accumulated to Rs 8,400,000.
On Saturday morning, the teachers and students had conducted and participated in classes on the street outside the college's building to protest against the move. Later in the day, the Sindh High Court had suspended the civil judge's order till September 23.
The provincial law officers, Ziauddin Junejo and Ale Maqbool Rizvi, informed the SHC bench that the government had filed an application with the Supreme Court in Islamabad against the order passed by the civil court regarding the rent matter.
Therefore, the court was pleaded to stay execution proceedings before the civil court, which is the executing court, till the decision on the government's plea in the apex court.
After hearing initial arguments from the law officers, Justice Siddiqui issued notices to the trustees of Aisha Bawany College and other respondents for September 23. "Meanwhile, the executing court is directed not to proceed with Execution No 04/2010 till the next date of hearing," the court further ordered.
Earlier that morning, teachers and students of the college had protested against sealing of the educational institution's building by the police in compliance with the order passed by the subordinate court.
In protest, the teachers had conducted classes on the street outside the college's building and number of the students attended.
On Monday, Chief Minister Murad Ali Shah also ordered that the college be reopened immediately but the building remained sealed.
Published in Daily Times, September 19th 2017.
