LAHORE: Days after Lahore police arrested four student leaders on charges of vandalism and arson during a protest outside a university, the authorities released the accused on Saturday after a judicial magistrate dropped the charges against them.
Haris Ahmed, Zubair Siddiqui, Sanaullah and Ali Ashraf were released following the orders. Prior to their releases, the police, on completion of the remand period, presented them in the court.
During the hearing, the students denied the charges levelled against them. “Police arrested us unfairly,” they said.
Part of a series of nationwide protests seeking online assessments instead of on-campus exams due to the coronavirus pandemic, hundred of students enrolled in a private university had staged a demonstration outside the premises earlier this week when the security baton-charged the participants, injuring many.
Subsequently, a contingent of the police arrived on the scene and arrested as many as 35 students.
During the hearing, the students reiterated their demand for online assessments instead of on-campus exams, arguing since they attended online classes throughout the last year due to the coronavirus pandemic, they should be examined under virtual conditions also.
Countrywide student bodies protested for a week seeking to be examined under virtual conditions.
They had also claimed universities had not completed the syllabi of different courses but now the institute’s administrations were pressing for exams.
The protesting students also called for a reduction in tuition fees since they did not attend classes in person and said that boarding schools should not be charging for lodging or meals.
