Dr Atif Mian's IBA Karachi seminar cancelled following 'threats' to university

A virtual seminar organised for students of IBA Karachi and featuring Dr Atif R. Mian has been cancelled, the celebrated economist was "sorry to report" on Thursday.

The seminar, due on November 5, had to be put off due to what Dr Mian said were "threats that the university administration was facing from extremists".

He wished the students of the varsity his "very best wishes and prayers".

Soon after his announcement, Twitter was abuzz with messages of solidarity for Dr Mian.

Adnan Rasool, a professor of political science at University of Tennessee at Martin, called Dr Mian "a graceful and patient man".

"You have shown more pose in the face [of] hate than most would ever in their lifetime," he wrote.

Canada’s High Commissioner to Pakistan Wendy Gilmour said she is "very sorry" to hear the event had to be cancelled.

"An opportunity lost for the students and wider interested community," she said.

The university, in a statement, apologised to all those who had been eagerly awaiting to participate in the seminar.

"Inconvenience is highly regretted," a post on IBA Karachi's Twitter account read.

The lecture was to debate why economic growth has fallen behind in Pakistan.

Dr Mian is a Pakistani-American economist who serves as a professor of Economics, Public Policy, and Finance at Princeton University and is also the Director of the Julis-Rabinowitz Center for Public Policy and Finance at the Princeton School of Public and International Affairs.