UET Dismisses Islamic Studies Chairman Amid Allegations of Hate Speech, Paper Leak

The University of Engineering and Technology (UET) Lahore has dismissed Hafiz Muhammad Shehbaz from his role as chairman of the Islamic Studies department.
This decision was made in response to serious allegations of hate speech against minorities and the leaking of a PhD examination paper. The UET syndicate, led by Vice-Chancellor Dr Nasir Hayat, made the call during a recent meeting. The allegations were raised by Dr Tanveer Qasim, a fellow department member, who accused Shehbaz of making inflammatory remarks and leaking the exam paper.
Upon reviewing the evidence, including a video of the hate speech, the syndicate concluded that Shehbaz had engaged in misconduct.
In light of these findings, UET has assigned Dr Shahid Rafiq, the dean of the Natural Sciences department, to take on the additional responsibilities of the Islamic Studies department chair. Both the Higher Education Department and the Punjab Higher Education Commission (PHEC) had previously requested detailed reports on Shehbaz’s conduct.
Dr Qasim’s petition emphasized Shehbaz’s public speeches targeting minorities, which sparked concern among minority communities and garnered significant attention from social and print media.
Prior to this, UET had conducted an inquiry into the leaked PhD exam paper, which had appeared on social media. The inquiry recommended that the FIA cybercrime wing investigate to identify the perpetrators. UET subsequently established a committee to investigate the paper leak during the PhD Islamic Studies entrance test. Dr. Qasim had filed a complaint with the Anti-Corruption Establishment in October 2021, following an unaddressed complaint to the dean in August.
On December 20, 2021, following a directive from the Higher Education Department, UET Vice-Chancellor Prof Dr Mansoor Sarwar formed a committee to investigate the matter