Holi parties at universities have been outlawed by the HEC.
Celebrations, according to the HEC’s executive director, “portray disconnect from sociocultural values,” which has drawn criticism.
KARACHI — The Higher Education Commission (HEC) has issued a directive for all universities to refrain from holding Holi celebrations on campus.
The HEC wrote to all universities and colleges on June 20, and the letter is available in The Express Tribune. It reads in part: “The higher education institutions may prudently distance themselves from all such activities obviously incompatible with the country’s identity and societal values, while ensuring that they rigorously engage their students and faculty in academic pursuits, intellectual debates, and cognitive learning, besides identifying, creating, and fostering talent.”
Holi was celebrated by students at Quaid-i-Azam University (QAU) on June 13 at approximately 4 p.m.
The Mehran Students Council (MSC) hosted the festival in the parking lot between the International Relations and Anthropology departments, and it was attended by students from the Punjab Students Council, the Pashtoon Students Council, the Siraiki Students Council, the Baloch Students Council, and the Gilgit Student Council.
It is painful to watch activities that reflect a complete separation from our culture values and a degradation of the country’s Islamic identity,” Dr. Shaista Sohail, executive director of the HEC, wrote in a letter to the government. The enthusiasm shown in creating the Hindu holiday of Holi is one such case that has raised some eyebrows.
That “this widely reported/publicized event from the platform of a university has caused concern and has negatively affected the country’s image,” the letter continued.
Students informed The Express Tribune that festival organizers had tried to acquire approval from QAU administration but were turned down because of concerns about providing equal opportunities for women.
Bisharat Ali, the general secretary of MSC, said, “The event was organized after office hours.”
Over 3,000 people took part, including not only QAU students but also students from other universities in Islamabad.
No one has raised any objections to our event, Ali added. In addition, “it is not a new thing, but we have been celebrating it for years to support our fellow Hindu students and friends,” he said.
Ali says there are about a hundred Hindu students from Sindh studying at QAU.
It’s worth noting that the ensuing fight between the two student councils forced QAU to close for almost 2.5 months.
We aimed to bring the student body together and help erase any negative experiences. Ali remarked, “The colors of Holi teach us to love everyone and to hate only hatred.”
Internet reaction
The administration of HEC has come under fire on social media for deciding to prohibit the Holi festival on campus. Really unfortunate. Twitter user Zulfiqar Halepoto demanded an apology from HEC.
“May I demand her [Dr. Shaista] resignation as her order is against the fundamental rights of citizens,” Ejaz Ali said.
Activists on social media have been calling for legal action to be taken against the HEC’s leadership and for the commission’s instructions to be reversed.
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Veengas, a Sindhi journalist, said, “Islamabad must understand that Holi/Diwali is part of the Sindhi culture —Islamabad neither accepts our Sindhi language nor does it honour the Hindu festivals.”
Ammar Ali Jan, a political activist, spoke out against the HEC’s decision to ban Holi, saying, “HEC should be concerned about the dismal state of education in the country.” Not one of our schools is in the top one thousand.
