MANSEHRA: The organisers of a Fakhr-e-Hazara award event have been accused of depriving students of Hazara University of their money under the guise of providing transport, refreshments and prizes.
“The Youth Leaders Parliament fleeced hundreds of students of our varsity by promising to provide them transport to the venue of the event in Abbottabad and nominating them for the so-called awards,” Akram Saleem, a student of the Artificial Intelligence Department at Hazara University, told reporters on Friday.
The Fakhr-e-Hazara awards, arranged at Jalal Baba Auditorium on May 19, drew criticism from people who questioned how a group of TikTokers associated with the Youth Leaders Parliament could claim the authority to honour or discredit people of Hazara.
“I don’t want to comment on the nature of these awards, but students are critical of the event as organisers collected Rs5,000 each in the name of award nominations and Rs500 each for transport and refreshments,” Akram Saleem said.
He said it was heartbreaking that hundreds of female students, whom they considered their sisters, were allegedly cheated along with them despite paying money and were left stranded on roads in scorching heat.
Hazara University, in a press release, clarified its position following the alleged scam, saying that the varsity was not responsible for any financial irregularities linked to the event.
“The varsity is not responsible for the mess that occurred during the awards event, including the denial of transport and refreshments, the selection of nominees, distribution of awards, and collection of funds, as these matters were handled by outsiders associated with the Youth Leaders Parliament,” the press release stated.
One of the office-bearers of the Youth Leaders Parliament, Hadia Khan said she did not want to comment as financial matters were directly linked to one of the central organisers.
