Education minister addresses students amid protests

Federal Minister for Education and Professional Training Shafqat Mehmood on Monday addressed the students’ protests against in-person examinations when their education had been completely online.
“Some university students are demanding that their exams should be online as they have been studying online. This is a decision for the universities to make but I have asked HEC to consult VCs and see if it is possible given special circumstances this year,” he said on Twitter.
“Universities should also assess whether they have the technical ability to conduct exam for ALL students. No one can be left behind. It is also necessary to ensure that online exam system is not misused to get easy grades,” he added as well.
Separately, Punjab Police had allegedly baton-charged students protesting against on-campus exams in Lahore, resulting in many of them being injured.
Progressive Students’ Collective (PSC) Lahore President Zubair Siddiqui had been arrested during the protests as well.
On the other hand, Saddar Division SP (Operations) Hafeezur Rehman Bugti claimed that the police focres “have not tortured [any students], and will not torture”. He added that no first information report (FIR) has been registered and police have asked the protesting students to hold negotiations with the university administration.