Academic institutions must encourage difference of opinion, dissent, disagreement

Seminar organised by the QAU to remember Mashal Khan

ISLAMABAD: It is the responsibility of academic institutions to create a culture that encourages difference of opinion, dissent and disagreement, Quaid-i-Azam University (QAU) Vice Chancellor Dr Javed Ashraf said.

He said this in a seminar organised by the QAU to remember Mashal Khan, a student who lost his life in a mob attack last month. The event was held on May 10, 2017, in the Earth Sciences Auditorium of the QAU.

The rationale of the event was to arrange a dialogue session to understand the safety of educational institutions. It is pertinent to note here that the murder of Mashal Khan, in broad daylight, was met with widespread condemnation from various sections of society.

“It is time for some introspection—to look within for the answers—rather than looking to blame some external enemy,” QAU faculty member Alia Amir Ali said.Alia Amir raised some important questions: “How certain is it that such an incident would never occur on any other campus? How can the fear and repression that surrounds such incidents be tackled? What mechanisms need to be devised to address issues that triggered this incident?”

The speakers for this seminar were Dr Asif Ali from the Mathematics Department of QAU and Dr Aasim Sajjad from the National Institute of Pakistan Studies of QAU. Dr Asif said that if true religious injunctions of Prophet Muhammad (SAW) were followed by the masses, then such incidents of violence would not surface.

On the other hand, Dr Aasim took a deeper view in the socio-political history of the country. He said that deviant social behaviour had always created problems in the society. “This is the reason why fanaticism has surfaced in our society,” he said. He also pointed out that it was the responsibility of the state to control such incidents, adding that the state should create an aura where the idea of questioning in public should not cultivate fear among people.

QAU Vice Chancellor Dr Javed Ashraf also graced the event with his presence, and gave concluding remarks as well. Dr Javed condemned the lynching of Mashal Khan and also expressed his concern over escalating social intolerance and bigotry.

He said that it was the responsibility of academic institutions to create a culture that encourages difference of opinion, dissent and disagreement. Students from various departments also participated in this event and raised some significant questions.