PESHAWAR: The increasing incidents of clashes between various student organisations have caused serious concern among the teachers and students of the NWFP Agricultural University.

Worried about the situation, the Agricultural University Teachers Association (AUTA) convened a meeting of its executive council with its president Prof Dr Fida Muhammad in the chair.

The teachers’ representatives condemned the frequent exchange of fire between activists of various student organisations in the university. The meeting was informed that three students had sustained injuries in an incident, but the varsity administration deliberately kept it secret and failed to take any step to avert such incidents.

The members of the body expressed dissatisfaction over the prevailing situation on the campus, particularly of the agricultural university. “How such a huge quantity of arms was brought into the university in the presence of the proctors, wardens and other administrative and security personnel,” the meeting observed.

The participants of the meeting were of the opinion that the main reason of such incidents was the lack of full-time vice-chancellor in the university. They stated that the tenure of the incumbent acting vice-chancellor, Prof Dr Said Khan Khalil, expired on January 2, 2010 with his retirement from service.

The meeting demanded of the chancellor of the university and NWFP Governor Owais Ahmad Ghani to constitute a judicial committee to probe the matter and book the culprits. The AUTA appreciated the concern of the NWFP Assembly regarding the undesirable and unlawful appointment of the incumbent vice-chancellor on acting basis despite his candidature for the slot for fourth consecutive term in violation of the university stature.

The meeting maintained that the teaching community of the university would be grateful to the chancellor for looking into the concern of the provincial assembly. The AUTA reiterated that the government ought to have started the selection process of vice-chancellor well in time so that the permanent vice-chancellor could have taken over soon after the retirement of the incumbent one.

The AUTA demanded of the chancellor to replace the incumbent vice-chancellor with secretary agriculture for interim period. As the incumbent VC got extension 3 times in the past and this time he was again a candidate for the same slot. To save this university from further unrest, the selection of regular vice-chancellor should be expedited, the meeting declared.The news