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| India-Pakistan |
| IHC CJ's daughters get preferential treatment at IIUI |
| 2014-05-02 |
| [DAWN] It is not unusual for universities to award financial aid to deserving students who cannot afford the high fees demanded by seats of higher learning. But when a varsity awards an exemption -- meant for the underprivileged -- to the children of a key government official, eyebrows are bound to be raised.* According to documents available with Dawn, the management of the International Islamic University Islamabad (IIUI) halved the fees of two sisters in contravention of all stated rules. Both students are daughters of Islamabad High Court (IHC) Chief Justice Mohammad Anwar Khan Kasi. Violating their own rules IIUI Director Academics Shagufta Haroon briefed Dawn on the process adopted to select students for the award of financial assistance, saying that every student has to fulfill the requirements before they can be considered. As per a notification dated June 3, 2008 and signed by Haroon herself, students are required to apply for financial assistance via a detailed form. According to the notification, only the "most deserving and needy students can apply for fee concession in the second semester on the basis of Cumulative Grade Point Average (CGPA)". The form, a copy of which is available with Dawn, asks students to provide minute details of their family background, assets, sources of income, employment and household expenses, among other details. But no such form is available on file at IIUI in the case of the two sisters. In contravention of existing rules, on March 7, 2013, Haroon herself marked for approval an application submitted by one of the students in question, asking for a fee relaxation on the basis of merit. The application was addressed to the university's vice president of academics. Sahibzada Sajidur Rehman -- who occupied the post at the time -- immediately approved the request and a notification was issued the same day, announcing a fee exemption of 50 per cent for both sisters. The basis for the exemption, according to the notification, was that "both the sisters have (a) good academic record". |
| Posted by:Fred |