Female students beaten for playing cricket in Karachi

Islami Jamiat Talaba activists beaten up girl students for playing cricket in Karachi.

New Delhi: In a bizarre incident, girl students playing cricket had resulted in a University of Karachi (KU) campus clash between Islami Jamiat Talaba (ITJ) activists and Punjabi Student Association (PSA) members yesterday.

According to reports in Pakistani media, IJT activists allegedly attacked girls who were playing cricket to pass the time until their vans arrived to take them home on Thursday. At least five persons, including female students were wounded in the clash.

KU Student Advisor Prof Dr. Ansar Rizvi he rushed to the spot along with KU Security Advisor Dr Muhammad Zubair and shifted one student to the varsity clinic for first aid after the clash, reported Pakistan Today.

Dr. Rizvi, in the report, said, " the students were playing cricket near the van stop along with their male classmates. The IJT workers showed up and demanded that they stop. The boys then questioned the identity of the IJT workers, leading to an exchange of heated words."

“They beat up the boys who argued with them and injured one of them... We rushed the injured boy to the varsity clinic where he disclosed that some girls were also injured in this attack," he added.

In a report in Pakistan Daily, PSA activist Mansoor said, “We were playing cricket at Terminal Point where scores of IJT activists suddenly appeared and started beating the PSA activists including females.”

He further claimed that, "IJT activists had warned female students against playing cricket three days ago, at least 20 IJT workers came with sticks and batons."

ITJ is the largest students' organisation in Pakistan, with a stated mission to preach Islam to students of modern institutions throughout Pakistan.