KARACHI: The longstanding issue of unpaid pensions and post-retirement dues for retired faculty and staff of the Federal Urdu University remained unresolved, despite repeated assurances from government officials.

Last month, during a protest outside the Governor House, Federal Education Minister Dr Khalid Maqbool Siddiqui and MNA Aminul Haque had assured the demonstrators that their pensions would be released immediately.

According to a statement, in solidarity with Kashmir Day, the retired faculty and staff decided to postpone their planned protest rally.

However, they strongly condemned VC Dr Zabta Khan Shinwari`s defiance of the federal minister`s directives as he had only approved the release of a single month`s pension, out of six months outstanding.

During a meeting following the protest, retirees denounced a ban on their assemblies as a violation of their constitutional rights and warned that if the restriction was not lifted, they would be forced to hold their meetings on University Road.-Dawn Report