PESHAWAR: The principal of Edwardes College has been accused of employing different tactics to usurp the historic institution in connivance with the Bishop of Peshawar.
Increasingly, demand has been made from the government to take early action to save the college.
Addressing a news conference at Peshawar Press Club, some former faculty members and current students levelled serious allegations against principal of the college retired Brigadier Dr Nayer Fardows and urged the government to immediately replace him as he has already completed his four-year term.
Prof Yousaf Anwar spoke in detail about the historical perspective and academic services of Edwardes College and explained with proof that it was an autonomous institution working under the administrative control of a board of governors chaired by Khyber Pakhtunkhwa governor.
He alleged that the principal with the help of the Bishop managed to mislead the court to get the college declared as a private institution. “Now they are accomplishing their designs by misinterpreting the verdict of the honourable court,” he argued.
Accompanied by a large number of students of the college, Yousaf Anwar said that Edwardes College was the oldest institution of the province set up by Christian missionaries in the year 1900. He recalled that in 1972 the college was nationalised like other institutions across the country and in 1974 a formal board of governors was constituted to overlook its affairs.
“The board of governors is headed by governor of Khyber Pakhtunkwa and Bishop of Peshawar serves as its vice chair. The governments have continued to give generous grants to the college for its smooth functioning and development. Ameer Haider Hoti, the former chief minister, had given a grant of Rs300 million to the college,” he explained.
However, the current principal came with a specific agenda to get the college out of government control, he said. He added that it was due to the “corrupt practices and evil designs” of the current principal that the college has lost its academic excellence.
He pointed out there was a time when Edwardes College was considered the best institution in the province and its merit used to be the highest than any other institution. It was so hard to acquire admission in the college, he said.
“But now during the last four years under the incumbent principal, its standard has dropped to the level that scores of students have migrated to other colleges. Only during the last one academic year, more than 500 students have left,” he claimed. “The current principal has resorted to even the meanest acts to malign the governor and other government functionaries. No court or any other body has abolished the board of the governors of the college, but the principal with the support of the Bishop announced a parallel board which was holding its meeting and taking illegal decisions,” he added.
He alleged that the principal has resorted to the worst kind of victimisation of teachers for raising their voice for justice.
The students present on the occasion threatened that they would launch a protest drive if the government failed to take timely action against the principal to save the institution.