ISLAMABAD: An inquiry committee, which was tasked to probe the matter of an unethical question asked by a lecturer of Comsats University Islamabad (CUI) to students, recommended that the university may include a psychologist on the panel to interview candidates for visiting faculty slots.

The three-member committee recommended that no teacher should be hired on visiting faculty if found psychologically unfit.

`HEC may also take necessary action to implement this suggestion across the board,` read the inquiry report. The inquiry was conducted by three members of Ministry of Science and Technology headed by Joint Electronics Adviser Zawar Hussain. The said lecturer was ter-minated from service some months ago for asking an inappropriate question in a quiz.

`HEC may issue standing orders/ instructions to all universities of Pakistan to abide by the approved curriculum and to ensure discipline viz a viz quizzes, discussion and topic,` the report stated.

The committee further recommended that relevant authorities may take appropriate action to ban literature that may hurt feelings of people of the country.

Talking about the lecturer, who prepared a controversial and unethical quiz, the committee said that the lecturerin question could not be reached by the committee, therefore, motives and intentions behind his act might only be known if he would properly be investigated.

The committee recommended that a first information report (FIR) should be registered against him and his case should be referred to investigation agencies for further probe. The committee recommended that the lecturer in question should be permanentlybanned through HEC from delivering lecture in any institute of the country. It is relevant to note here, the CUI earlier this year, had terminated the services of the abovementioned lecturer.

According to a letter dated Feb 2 of this year, the university administration said: `[An] inquiry against the content of the quiz of English Subject of BEE, 1st Semester Course Code HUM 100... action on the matter has already been taken and the service of Lecturer (visiting faculty) has been terminated with effect from January 5, 2023.` It further stated that this faculty member has also been blacklisted.

It is relevant to note here that students of the Bachelor of Electrical Engineering (BEE) of CUI were `shocked` to read a highly objectionable question in their English quiz when they were asked to write a 300 word essay on incest.

Meanwhile, President Dr Arif Alvi directed CUI to provide a student with a chance to complete his education as his future was at stake because his admission was cancelled by the university after he had already completed seven out of eight semesters of his degree.

The university had cancelled the student, identified as Hammad bin Zain`s admission after 3.5 years on the grounds that he was not eligible for admission to the university in 2017 as he had obtained fewer marks than required.

The president gave these orders while accepting a representation filed by a student against orders of the Wafagi Mohtasib (WM). The complainant had filed a complaint against the university before WM, stating that it was the responsibility of the university to check the eligibility criteria and that he should have been denied admission in 2017, if he did not meet the requirements. The mohtasib, in its decision, did not provide any relief to the complainant and only ordered the university to conduct an inquiry into the whole situation and hold guilty officers/officials responsible for their negligence.

The president rejected Wafagi Mohtasib`s decision by observing that the student was studying in the BS (Business Administration) programme and had already completed 3.5 years of his degree programme. He said that since there was no allegation of misrepresentation against him, the student should not be made to suffer for the negligence committed by the university`s administration. He noted that the student`s time, money and efforts would be wasted due to the cancellation of his admission.