68 PhD absconders, 42 failed lecturers cause over Rs1 billion loss

By Arshad Aziz Malik
November 05, 2020

PESHAWAR: As many as 68 lecturers from public sector universities of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, who went abroad for PhD on government expenses, did not return, while 42 others came back without completing their studies.

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The absconders and failed employees have caused approximately over Rs1 billion loss to the national exchequer. The cost of doing a PhD abroad ranges from Rs10 to Rs15 million. The Higher Education Commission (HEC) and the respective universities have initiated legal proceedings for the recovery of the total amount spent on them along with 25 per cent penalty. Only one or two institutions have succeeded to recover some of the amount.

According to official statistics of the HEC provided under the Right to Access to Information Act, 2017, public sector universities in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa sent 734 assistant professors and lecturers for PhD studies abroad on scholarship during the last 10 years. Out of the total, 550 scholars have returned after completing their education, while 68 are absconders, 42 failed to complete the degree and 74 are still studying abroad in different universities.

Some of the cases against absconders are sub-judice in different courts, while the rest have been sent to the FIA and police for registration of cases. The HEC, however, declined to comment further.

According to data available with the scribe under the Right to Information Act, 2013, 10 faculty members from Shaheed Benazir Bhutto Women University, Peshawar, were sent abroadfor PhD, but some of them could not complete their studies, while a few disappeared. An amount of Rs 136.1264 million is outstanding against them. These expenses include tuition fees, stipends, air tickets and 25 per cent penalty.

The outstanding amount with names of the absconders is Rs16.2 million (Wirda Nisar), Rs15.11 million (Huma Anwar), Rs18.92 million (Haleema Sadia), Rs10.23 (Syeda Saba Shah), Rs25.4533 million (Saima Zaffar) and Rs12.77 million (Syeda Fatima Shah).

The successful scholars who failed to complete their bond period at the university are Laila Naqvi (Rs11.02 million), Ayesha Maqbool (Rs10.10 million), Asma Basit (Rs22.45 million)and Siaqa Noor (Rs7.72 million), but she has paid Rs2.39 million to date.

The Khyber Medical University has declared Dr Bushra Kamal and Dr Fahimur Rahman as absconders, but failed to recover any amount from them for long. Al least, Rs20 million are to be recovered from both.

The Islamia College University, Peshawar, has dismissed Alamgir Khan and Muhammad Rashid from service and recovery proceedings of over Rs20 million have been initiated against them as both disappeared and did not return to the university. The audit report has pointed out recovery of the amount from both the lecturers.

The record of Shaheed Benazir University, Sheringal, Dir Upper, revealed that two lecturers Javed Iqbal and Bushra Hameed went aboard in 2014 and 2015, but still have not returned after completing education. However, the university sources claimed that they had recently contacted the authorities to join the university.

As many as 17 employees of the Kohat University of Science and Technology, Kohat, are absconders or returned with an incomplete degree. The amount pending against Noor Mast is Rs8.4 million, Muhammad Ali Zeb Rs7.3 million, Said Imran Rs11.2 million, Muhammad Abrar Khan Rs7.7 million, Tahir Naeem Rs4 million, Irfan Ullah Rs10.8 million, Nida Aslam Rs7.6 million, Muhammad Adeel Rs7.4 million, Adeelah Tariq Rs8.5 million, Adeel Nasir Rs0.4 million, Naveed Ahmad Rs5.2 million, Rana Muhammad Hamza Rs7 million, Shahid Ameen Rs3.5 million, Ali Hyder Baig Rs2.7 million, Robeena Rs 1.9 million, Munawar Ahmad Rs 0.9 million and Abdul Malik Khan is Rs1.4 million.

The Hazara University's 11 scholars, who didn't return to the institution, are Tazayian Sayira, Mohsin Shah, Muhammad Imran Naseer, Farah Deeba, Arif Ullah, Arshad Khan, Sayed Kashif Hussain Shah, Andleeb Sharif, Shahid Nawaz, Imran Abbasi and Zonera Hassan.

The Malakand University's five lecturers, who went abroad, but failed to complete PhD, include Asghar Ali (Rs5.7 million), Sardar Hussain (Rs7.3 million), Zaib Khan (Rs8 million) and Aamir Sohail (Rs7.3 million.

The University of Peshawar has initiated legal proceedings against 10 employees Sajid Farooq, Raheel Ali Baloch, Nasir Abbasi, Muhammad Zubair, Shumaila Naeem, Shams Ul Haq, Natasha Qaisar, Fardah Shahid, Uzma Saadiqa Aslam and Maryum Mushtaq for the recovery of the amount spent on their scholarship.

The University of Engineering, Peshawar, record reveals that five assistant professors, who did not return after completing education, are Muhammad Owais Mehmudi, Ikram Ullah, Sheraz Khan, Mehmood Alam Khan and Muhammad Mustafa Kamal. Approximately, Rs10 million are outstanding against them. The cases of absconders have been sent to the FIA, Foreign Office, NADRA for appropriate action and block their CNICs as well as their guarantors' CNICs.

Similarly, six officials of the Institute of Management Sciences, Peshawar did not come back. Assistant Professor Shabi Ul Hassan (Rs5 million) and Sarosh Shabi (Rs5 million) paid the remaining amount. However, Nafees Ur Rehman and Adnan Javed are defaulters and facing case in the court of law.

Abdul Wali Khan University, Mardan, has seven defaulters Amjad Khan, Pirzada, Umar Farooq, Muhammad Khan, Aisha Rasool, Sadaf Afreen and Ghazan Nawaz. Despite several reminders, the university did not sent any detail of the amount pending against them.

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