FAISALABAD, Dec 4: An ‘out-of-the-way’ attempt by district coordination officer to resolve a student issue on Thursday resulted in a scuffle between the officer and the head of a private educational institute owned by an influential industrialist.

According to the eyewitnesses, the female students of the private Faisalabad University were protesting against its administration for not getting the B-Pharmacy department affiliated with the Pharmacy Council.

The students blocked the main Sargodha Road, resulting in a massive traffic jam. Scores of vehicles, including that of DCO Saeed Wahla, who was returning from Lahore, got stranded in the traffic.

Seeing female students protesting on the road, the DCO got off his official car and went to the students, asking what made them block the road.

The girls informed him that the varsity administration was bent upon ruining their future as it was not fulfilling the conditions for getting the department accredited by the council.

They complained the administration had not even appointed the department head that was a must for the council accreditation. Besides, no separate library had been built for the pharmacy department that was also a council requirement, they said, adding the qualified teachers were also being denied to the students as the varsity was not ready to pay them adequately.

On hearing the complaints, and after convincing the students to clear the road, the DCO went inside the institute and asked its head, Dr Abdul Majeed, to do the required to resolve the issue.

Dr Majeed, however, took the DCO’s initiative as an insult and rudely asked the officer to leave the institute premises or he would be pushed out as he was not authorised to intervene in the varsity’s affairs.

However, the DCO told him that the matter was within his jurisdiction as the protesting students had blocked a main artery, and were causing traffic problem.

An exchange of hot arguments ensued, which turned ugly when Majeed pushed the DCO to force him out.

Meanwhile, an institute employee, Sher Mohammad, started using foul language against the DCO and slapped him. However, the police escorting the DCO intervened and bundled the attacker into their official vehicle after giving him a sound thrash.

Soon another police contingent reached the spot and arrested two other employees of the varsity. However, they were released after the DCO pardoned them.

Talking to the media, the DCO refused to comment on the incident. However, he said the varsity management assured him that they would fulfill the requirements for the council accreditation within one month.

Later, addressing a meeting of the students and the varsity management, the DCO said all the necessary facilities should be provided to the students, otherwise the district administration would seal the institute.

Dr Majeed said Pharmacy department head would be appointed by Dec 15, claiming the varsity administration had been doing its utmost to get the department recognised by the Pharmacy Council.

He said the university had purchased modern equipment worth Rs2.4 million for the department.