Talibanization in NUST Islamabad campus
Update: The rector NUST has responded to this so before you make an opinion, please read and follow the live tweets from his speech with the students on Twitter.
The author of the article has requested to remain Anonymous
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Chief of the army staff General Ashfaq Pervaiz Kiyani said in his address at PMA Kakul that forcing your views on others is terrorism and thats what we are fighting against. In the war against terror, other than the financial losses, more than 40000 citizens have died and our army has offered endless sacrifices including martyrdoms from top ranked generals to the soldiers and even small children. Operations were launched to clear the Lal Masjid, Swat, Dir, Malakand, and operation is underway in Tribal areas.
While Pakistani state is fighting with Talibans for them forcing their views on others, terrorists have taken some key posts in Islamabad where they practice the similar Talibanization.
It goes unnoticed that every night at 9.30pm curfew is being declared at an area of 843 sq. Acres in the heart of Islamabad and in case of violation you will be abducted by a van full of gunmen all pointing guns at you and now a retired army personnel would decide your fate and will also rob you of a handsome amount, that area is NUST H-12 campus.
NUST which is Pakistans top ranked university and represents Pakistan internationally it has been hijacked by some officials who have the mentality of Talibans and preaching the same way as the officials of Lal Masjid did.
The extremist activities were on going since long but with the start of the new academic year it has now became even more torturous. The curfew timings are to be changed from 9.30pm and now it will start at 7.30pm. International universities are open 24/7 to facilitate the students in working the way they are comfortable and not to torture the researchers with such useless rules. Hostelites are not allowed to enter, after the curfew timings, if they are late due to traffic or some unforeseen reasons.
University has a co-education system since the start of the university but now any interaction between boys and girls is banned. Together as class fellows, in research groups and being friends how could they not interact with each other? What is non-objectionable before 5pm becomes objectionable after 5pm, while the classes are scheduled up to 8pm. With boys not allowed to visit the cafeteria and girls not allowed to step out of hostels, The University is turning out to be a jail where the prisoners perform their normal activities all the day and then in the evening they are locked in the barracks. Prisoners do not have the choice to eat something else if they do not like the food same goes for the hostelites at NUST as they are not allowed to visit cafeteria. Like prisoners are not allowed to go out without payroll and there are certain timings and days when the people can come to meet the prisoners, same is including in the new rules for hostelites. Family/Guardians can meet their children only on weekends that too in restricted timings and girls are not allowed to leave university campus without Mehram.
Some people would definitely find it very fascinating to stop interaction between boys and girls but when parents allow their children to apply at NUST, they know there is co-education system. Every year, in the brochures, officials who are now following the foot steps of Talibans, advertise pictures of boys and girls together under the heading of Campus Life, such pictures also does not make any sense. When parents have allowed their children to go in co-education system then why university administration dictates someones private life.
Music, movies, video games or any such entertainment is strictly prohibited for Nustians, being taken as immoral, thus making life miserable for hostelites. All such websites have long been blocked just like Talibans bomb music stores. If some student plays music in his car a platoon of gunmen would appear making him stop that non-religious activity and will fine him. It reminds me of the students of Lal Masjid who used to do the same on the roads of Islamabad. In such situation organizing concerts goes totally out of question.
While the world is busy making internet facility available to every one and promoting use of internet on mobile phones to increase the access to knowledge, NUST admin allows internet facility during limited timings after which internet connections are forcefully closed. This deprivation is to the people who, as claimed by the NUST admin, are top class professionals and researchers of the country. Officials say when its time to take rest, we close internet connections so that no one works anymore, thus directly imposing their views and life style on others. They do not consider that researchers have also to collaborate with foreigners and when it is night time in Pakistan it might be day time in some other countries.
Undergraduate students are not allowed to have their cars while the law permits every 18+ citizen to drive and have his car, if he can afford it. According to Pakistani law the speed limit in the cities is 50kmph but in NUST where there is very thin population of only a few thousand fully grown up people with no children or old aged people, the speed limit is 40kmph. Under which provision they are collecting fines for over speeding and fines are even higher than those of Motorway Police.
To make students to dress more morally and religiously, admin has now found it necessary to teach university students how to dress by imposing uniform, for girls it also includes covering their heads with Dupatas. May be boys will also soon be directed to have beard and have caps on their heads.
Beside this Talibanization NUST is also very poorly managed and burdening the poor. Admissions are opened only once in a year but entry tests are held twice and from this year they are planning to hold entry tests three times in a year. Entry test fee is two thousand Rupees for one genre which is very high despite the fact that test is computer based and does not cost anything. Last year 20 million Rupees were generated through a single entry test and now they are planning to multiply this collection.
Billions of Rupees have been spent extravagantly to build NUST Head Quarter which appears to be a royal palace and students commonly call it Darbar-e-Rector. Building has more offices than the combined number of class rooms in all respective departments at H-12 campus. On the other side students are having classes in gym because of non-availability of enough class rooms, a considerable number of students in hostels are sleeping on floor and to hundreds hostel facility is refused.
A few years back there was a military operation in Lal Masjid and Jamia Hafsa as they were forcing their views on others and interfering in the life of others, in the similar fashion. Now there is a call for operation cleanup to stop terrorism in NUST too which is just a few miles away from Lal Masjid. A detailed audit of the developmental projects at NUST is also necessary. If no notice is taken against these activities then victims of Lal Masjid would be justified in asking that My Dog is a ***** and your dog is a Tommy?