The University of Swat (UoS) on Saturday suspended its chief proctor Hazrat Bilal for ordering male and female students not to mingle on and off the campus. A notice issued by the Chief Proctor of University of Swat on Friday barred the university's male and female students from socialising with each other. According to the notice, students sitting or walking with those of the opposite gender inside the university, as well as outside the campus premises will have to pay a penalty ranging from Rs50 to Rs5000, along with an emergency meeting between their parents and school authorities.
However, soon after the notice was issued, the Vice Chancellor of University of Swat, Dr Jan Bakht, ordered an explanation call to Chief Proctor Hazrat Bilal for issuing the notification without his permission, spokesperson for University of Swat stated. According to Bilal, the notification was a prank played by a student of the department and that the notification had originally been issued in 2011.
"All the students of University of Swat are informed hereby that Boys and Girls are not allowed to sit or walk together within the campuses or outside the campuses," the notification states. As the notification triggered debate on gender discrimination, PRO UoS Aftab Ahmed on Friday stated that the Vice Chancellor has constituted a committee to investigate the matter.
A statement posted on the UoS's official Facebook page, released from its PR office, said issuance of notices pertaining to varsity policy matters is the prime responsibility of the registrar office and" no other official is entitled to notify any policy related order". "Vice Chancellor cleared and expressed that there is no space for gender discrimination at varsity and condemned the fake notification from unidentified person," said the statement.