A clip of an incident of harassment went viral on September 28, highlighting the issue of rising rate of crimes against women in Karachi.
In the video, filmed by a student in a van, a man can be seen exposing himself in front of the female students while chasing the van for five minutes near the UBL Sports Complex opposite Lucky One Mall.
IG Sindh Police Rafat Mukhtar Raja took notice and the case was registered in Joharabad Police Station. It was pledged that the harasser would be made an example of. With the help of CCTV, the police made a raid near Federal B Area’s Block 15 and arrested the man who was identified as Adeel Zafar.
Police have also recovered a small amount of heroin from him and it is confirmed that another case will be filed against the suspect.
The total number of charges according to the Pakistan Penal Code are under Sections 294 (obscene acts and songs), 354 (assault or criminal force to woman with intent to outrage her modesty), and 509 (insulting modesty or causing sexual harassment).
Karachi University Teachers’ Society (KUTS) held a meeting on Thursday, announcing a boycott of teaching classes from Friday (today), demanding the Chief Minister of Sindh to take immediate notice of the administrative crisis at the University of Karachi.
Express Tribune spoke with KUTS secretary, Faizan Naqvi, who explained that regular and visiting faculty members have not received their evening program salaries for over a year and a half, and the total amount owed exceeds Rs70 million.
This means that the evening program is operating at a loss.
Naqvi highlighted that all university employees are being paid their salaries except for the teachers. Currently, there are around 250 permanent teachers for the part-time evening program.
Demands
Karachi University Teachers Association has announced a complete boycott of the teaching process from Friday. The decision to boycott was taken in a general body meeting organised by the teachers association.
The teachers’ association has also demanded an investigation by the commission for the non-approval of the university budget for six years.
The participants of the meeting expressed their anger over the appointment of part-time teachers at six hundred rupees per lecture and non-payment of salaries to them for more than six months and a year.
They demanded that the dues evening classes should be paid in full and on an immediate basis.
Moreover, they pressed upon the restoration of exemption in MPhil and PhD fees should be restored immediately.
They highlighted that handling of administrative matters is the responsibility of the Sheikh-ul-Jamia and the management team, not the teachers. That being said, ad hoc Assistant Professor appointment of Ph.D. teachers approved by the syndicate should also be restored.
The meeting demanded for immediate release of funds for the revival of research in the university; that the budget of the university, which has not been approved for the last six years, is financial corruption and must be investigated by a commission. The hike announced in Budget 2023 should be included in salaries without delay.
Sindh Information Minister Sharjeel Inam Memon on Tuesday (July 5) said that the Karachi University (KU) suicide bombing on April 26 was a joint plan by the banned Balochistan Liberation Army (BLA) and the Balochistan Liberation Front (BLF).
On Monday, a 13-member Chinese delegation, led by a Chinese counterterrorism official, called on Sindh Chief Minister (CM) Murad Ali Shah and discussed with him security measures for Chinese nationals working in Sindh and the progress of the probe into the KU attack.
An intelligence team of the Counter-Terrorism Department (CTD) revealed in the meeting that an “important accused” had been arrested.
Addressing a press conference today, Memon said that the suspect, a terrorist, had revealed that the KU attack was the joint work of the BLF and the BLA.
“During the investigation process, the suspect made important revelations. He said that he was the commander of a BLF sleeper cell in Karachi.”
Memon further said that the suspect met the husband of the female suicide bomber (Shari Baloch), Dr Haibastan Bashir, and another “important terrorist” named “Zeb” in Karachi, and helped to carry out the KU attack.
The minister further added that the suspect revealed that “Zeb was the KU attack mastermind”, who entered Pakistan from a “neighbouring country” and had been staying in Karachi with Shari Baloch and her husband.
Shari Baloch, a 30-year-old woman, committed a suicide bombing near the Confucius Institute of Karachi University on April 26. In the suicide attack, she targeted four people, including Chinese nationals and a van driver.
She was an educated woman who belonged from Kech, Balochistan. She had been with Balochistan Students Organisation-Azad (BSO Azad) since college. She later joined the separatist movement of the Majeed Brigade of the Baloch Liberation Army (BLA). She completed her master’s degree in education from Allama Iqbal Open University in 2014.
The 30-year-old Shari Baloch committed a suicide bombing near the Confucius Institute of Karachi University on April 26. In the suicide attack, she targeted four people including Chinese nationals and a van driver, reports Independent Urdu.
She was an educated woman who belonged from Kech, Balochistan. She had been with Balochistan Students Organisation-Azad (BSO Azad) since college. She later joined the separatist movement of the Majeed Brigade of the Baloch Liberation Army (BLA). She completed her master’s degree in education from Allama Iqbal Open University in 2014
However, as per Urdu news reported that he completed a bachelor’s in Education (B.Ed) in 2014 and earned a Master’s degree in education in 2018. Later, she also earned a master’s degree in Zoology. As per her allegedly Twitter account, she has done M.Phil in education as well. She was married to a doctor and have two children together, one son and a daughter. She was teaching in a government school in Balochistan but the school did not confirm it yet.
Her relative revealed to a reporter that most of the family members are part of the bureaucracy.
According to her relative, “It is being said on social media that some members of Shari Baloch’s family went missing so she took such a step to take revenge but not a single person in her family has gone missing to date. She was ideologically committed to it, so maybe she took such a step.”
Counter-Terrorism Department (CTD) Raja Umar Khattab also confirmed that it was the suicide attack that was carried out by a female clad-in-burqa. Police also released CCTV footage in which Shari Baloch was standing near the gate of the Confucius Institute. She blew up when a van was about to enter the institute at 1:52 pm.
[TRIGGER WARNING] VIDEO MAY BE SENSITIVE TO SOME AUDIENCE
Four people lost their lives including three Chinese nationals and a driver while three people survived from injuries including Ranger personnel, one Chinese national, and a security guard. The injured people were taken to a nearby hospital
The deceased three Chinese nationals are identified as Prof. Huang GuiPing, Ding Mufang, and Chen Sai while Wang Yuqing received injuries.
Later, Balochistan Liberation Army (BLA) took the responsibility for the suicide attack near the Confucius Institute.
A spokesperson of BLA spokesman said, “Shari joined the Majeed Brigade two years ago and six months ago she confirmed that she was determined to carry out the attack. She has been active in her mission ever since.”
A tweet from her husband, Habitan Bashir Baloch also came to light for appreciating his wife’s selfless act.
He penned down, “Shari Jan, your selfless act has left me speechless but I am also beaming with pride today. Mahroch and Meer Hassan will grow into very proud humans thinking what a great woman their mother was. You will continue to remain an important part of our lives.
“The police had received reports regarding security threats to Chinese nationals and security was also provided to them, however, no intelligence report of suicide attack through a female bomber was received,” the top police official said while speaking on Geo News program Aaj Shahzeb Khanzada Kay Saath.
China has strongly condemned the recent suicide attack on Karachi University and extended deep condolences and sympathies to the families of the victims.
In a statement, the Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson said, “The government of the People’s Republic of China expresses strong condemnation and indignation over this major terrorist attack and extends deep condolences to the victims and sympathies to the injured and bereaved families.”
Assistant Minister of Foreign Affairs Wu Jianghao called the Pakistan Ambassador to China Moinul Haque and demanded that Pakistan should immediately make a thorough investigation into the tragic incident, and apprehend and punish the perpetrators to the full extent of the law. “We expect that Pakistan will take all possible measures to ensure the safety of Chinese citizens living across Pakistan and to avoid the recurrence of such cowardice incidents happening again.”
Moin ul Haque, in a message, said, “The entire nation is in shock and mourns the loss of these precious lives including our Chinese friends.”
Prime Minister (PM) Shehbaz Sharif also visited the Chinese Embassy in Islamabad after the incident to offer condolence over the incident.
PM said, “The blood of the Chinese people should not be shed in vain, and those behind this incident will surely pay the price.”
Netizens are divided over a Times of Karachi report from Sunday wherein the media organisation had claimed initiation of action against at least four male and female students of the port city’s Institute of Business Administration (IBA) over “inappropriate activity”.
According to the report, the four students, including two girls, were questioned by Karachi University (KU) guards over “inappropriate activity” in a vehicle with tinted windows, which was parked within the premises of the Karachi University (KU) on Sunday.
“The KU administration will write a letter to IBA on Monday to ask them to investigate why students came to the university on Sunday and parked their tinted car at an abandoned place,” the report quoted sources as saying.
While no official statement confirming or denying the incident has as of yet been issued by either of the two institutions, here’s what social media users have to say about it…
TWITTER:
Write a letter? Send it by Pakistan Post? IBA is literally inside KU. Phoning would be quicker.
