The Sindh College Education Department has removed the principal of the historical Government College for Women, Chand Bibi Road, after a massive iron grill, reportedly worth millions of rupees, was allegedly sold to a scrap dealer in a controversial incident that triggered strong action from provincial authorities.
According to official orders, Principal Associate Professor Fakhrunnisa has been directed to report to the College Education Department, while junior clerk Manzoor Ali has been suspended. Senior clerk Abdul Ghafoor has been transferred to the City College, while junior clerk Mohammad Shahid has been posted to the Pakistan Shipowners College in North Nazimabad.
College sources told The News that junior clerk Manzoor Ali, with the alleged assistance of two accomplices, arranged for the heavy iron grill of the heritage building to be cut and sold to a scrap dealer on the afternoon of April 28 for Rs1.3 million.
Sources said the grill, described as old, solid and structurally significant, was being removed from the premises through a truck when the matter came to light. The vehicle was reportedly stopped before it could leave the college premises and the grill was unloaded.
The sources further claimed that those involved possessed a formally issued gate pass allegedly signed by the principal, permitting the removal of the iron structure from the campus.
The incident prompted Sindh Education Minister Sardar Shah to take serious notice of the matter and direct Colleges Secretary Farrukh Shehzad Qureshi to initiate strict disciplinary action against those responsible.
The Government College for Women on Chand Bibi Road is regarded as a historically significant educational institution. The building originally housed the University of Karachi when the university began functioning there in June 1951 before moving to its present campus in 1956. The premises were later converted into a women’s college. Officials said further inquiry into the attempted disposal of material from the heritage structure was under way and additional action could not be ruled out.
