ressure is mounting on the federal government and the Capital Development Authority (CDA) as protests against the construction of the Bhara Kahu bypass pick up steam.

Earlier this week, the faculty and students of Quaid-i-Azam University (QAU) registered their disapproval of the project by taking classes at the project site. This was followed by a statement issued by the university staff confirming that the faculty, students and alumni had started the ‘onsite teach-in’ at the construction site to record their protest.

Faculty members have also been protesting on social and mainstream media. In recent weeks, the protest has been among top trends on Twitter.

The protests over the CDA’s decision to build a 5.6 kilometres bypass road erupted about two weeks ago when it became apparent that the road would cut through the university campus. The protestors said the project would split the land allotted to the university into two non-communicating parts. They said the QAU community was not opposed to the project per se. The objection, they said, was to using the university’s land for the purpose.

A Joint Action Committee has been formed to work on the single-point agenda of protecting the university against acquisition of its land for the project. It has representation from the Academic Staff Association, the Officers’ Welfare Association, the Employees’ Welfare Association and the QAU Alumni Association. A factsheet released by the committee says the Bhara-Kahu Bypass project will have far-reaching implications for the university.

The JAC says that the project violates the sanctity of the university. It says the project will bisect the campus into two noncontagious, barricaded parts. It says the completion of the project will diminish the chance of having dedicated road access for the university.

The protestors said the project would split the land allotted to the university into two non-communicating parts. They said the QAU community was not opposed to the project per se. The objection, they said, was to using the university’s land for the purpose. 

The factsheet also contends that the project is detrimental to the natural environment and will ruin the extremely valuable Botanical Garden of the QAU. It says the overhead bridge violates the master plan of the university and will encroach on sites reserved for National Research Centres. “The Bhara Kahu bypass will consumes about 600 kanals of university land rendering significant additional land unusable. It will leave about 2,000 kanals of land on the front at the mercy of encroachers,” it reads. “It will destroys the peaceful academic and research environment,” the statement concludes.

Dr Muhammad Zaman, the founding chairman of the School of Sociology, has said that removing the overhead bridge from the university’s land would require little to no effort on the part of the CDA. University officials say they doubt that Prime Minister Shahbaz Sharif is pushing the CDA to go ahead with the project. They tell TNS that they suspect that someone in the civic body is being pointlessly stubborn.

The secret of the rise of QAU to the top position in the global ranking is its faculty. Few people may know that a considerable number of its faculty members are also its alumni. They have an unquestionable attachment to this institution. Many of them relive their youth and remember the time when they were students here.

Some faculty members and others had earlier filed a court case but the plea has been dismissed. Now the QAU community is demanding an urgent resolution of its concerns on the construction of the Bhara Kahu bypass.

Universities in Islamabad lack a culture of resistance, save for the occasional protests by certain student groups. The QAU is unique in the sense that its faculty and students have come together to protect their interests and protest against a perceived threat. It is not the first time that students and faculty working collectively for a cause.

The writer, an ICFJ fellow, has an interest in conflict resolution and diplomacy