Naimat Khan
KARACHI: A teacher of the University of Karachi (UoK), who had gone missing nearly three weeks ago, returned home on Wednesday morning, his family and colleagues told The Frontier Post.
Dr Hafiz Ismail Aarfi, an assistant profession in the Usooluddin Department of the University was picked up from his home in the wee hours of September 15, 2015.
Meanwhile, the Karachi University Teachers Society and Federation of All Pakistan Universities Academic Staff Association (FAPUASA have announced to observe ‘Black Day” on Friday across Pakistan.
According to KUTS President Shakeel, Dr Ismail was taken away by personnel of a paramilitary force.
“It is so heart-breaking and disappointing that a respected and noble university professor is whisked away by Rangers from his home and set free [a] couple of weeks later,” KUTS’s press statement read.
“Something is wrong here and that has to be straightened out.”
KUTS is also consulting lawyers and lawmakers to move a court of law for appropriate legal action against such incidents, the statement read.
“Teachers condemn the arrest of Dr Ismail Aarfi and vowed to react strongly to any such incident if [it] occurs in [the] future,” according to the statement jointly issued by KUTS and FAPUASA.
Dr Ismail had gone missing for last fifteen days; we reported a day earlier.
“Professor Dr. Muhammad Ismail Arfi had been picked up paramilitary Rangers at 2:35 on September 15,” his wife Aamna Ismail has told University administration in a letter, copy of which is also available to The Frontier Post.
“I Aamna Ismail wife of Muhammad Ismail, resident of House No R-152, Sector-A Mashriqi Cooperative Society near Gulshan-e-Ma’amar, Karachi inform you that at around 2:35am on night between Thursday, September 14, 2017 and Friday, September 15, 2017 the door bell of our house rang and we were asked to open the door,” reads the letter addressed to Dean Faculty of Islamic Studies, University of Karachi.
According to Aamna the official informed that they were Rangers. “I opened the door whereas my husband informed neighbor through phone so when they [neighbors] were coming towards our house, the Rangers sent them back,” she further states.
The Rangers, who had come in six to seven vehicles, took my husband with them, she has claimed.
According to Aamna her husband Dr Muhammad Ismail is highly educated and patriotic Pakistani, who has obtained LLB degree besides having PHD in his subject. “He is permanent faculty member of Usooluddin department where he had been teaching for the last eight years. He has thousands of students,” reads the letter, which has urged upon the varsity officials to play their role in releasing Dr Ismail.
This scribe contacted Rangers for its version but spokesman of the paramilitary force didn’t respond after the initial response that he will check authenticity of the claim.
