The 'Do Not Reply' policy at Karachi University is creating impediments in official matters and causing disenchantment among the teaching faculty and other employees, Business Recorder has learnt. Sources said higher authorities don't respond the letters written by chairman of the departments and dean of faculties.
They said that majority of teachers of Department of Microbiology, University of Karachi, were annoyed over the alleged irregularities in the process of admissions in BS III Year (Previous) in the department so much that forced the chairman of the department to resign.
Interestingly, when Professor Syed Muhammad Khalid, chairman Department of Microbiology, tendered his written resignation to the competent authority, which is Registrar Karachi University, no letter has so far been issued to him whether his resignation was accepted or not. "I should have been issued an official letter by registrar office whether my resignation letter is accepted or not," said Professor Syed Muhammad Khalid.
Instead, he said, he was issued a letter stating: "The competent authority is pleased to advise Professor Syed Muhammad Khalid, Chairman Department of Microbiology, to handover the charge of the Department to the Dean, Faculty of Science with immediate effect. The Dean Faculty of sciences will look after the routine administrative and academic affairs of the department".
Professor Khalid termed the response of the competent authority to his resignation letter a 'jargon of words' as it did not mentioned clearly whether his resignation was accepted or not. Sources said though Professor Dr Darakshan J. Haleem, Dean Faculty of Sciences, was now heading the Department of Microbiology for the last many months, Professor Khalid was still officially Chairman of the Microbiology Department as no letter had been issued to Professor Khalid with respect to acceptance of his resignation.
Sources said that 'Do Not Reply' policy at Karachi University has become a permanent feature of high authorities' response to official letters sent by Chairman or other officials. They said if any chairman resigned from his post, then he was only given a reply as: "Chairman is advised to hand over the Charge somebody else" without mentoring whether the resignation was accepted or not.
It has also been learnt that the Microbiology Department had only 45 seats, and according to the university rules students in the K (Karachi) category are given preference followed by the S (Sindh) and the P (Pakistan) categories. But the university gave 74 admissions in 2012, continuing the dubious practices of last year 2011 wherein 64 students were given admission in the department. Sources claimed that nepotism and favouritism in University of Karachi was prevalent, as hundreds of students were given admissions in various departments in violation of rulers and against merits.