University of Gujrat students are up in arms after a fellow student passed away after what is being termed as negligence of hostel administration.
Arooj Fatima, a student of University of Gujrat, Rawalpindi Campus, suddenly passed away early on Friday morning due, what the students are calling, negligence of the hostel warden
Arooj was in her third semester of Applied Translation Studies at the English Department. She was from Attock and was a hostel resident at the UoG, Rawalpindi Campus.
According to her roommate and other hostelites, Arooj was bit by an insect on Thursday night and she had a severe headache. When her friends and fellow hostelites went to the hostel warden to ask her to take Arooj to the hospital, the warden refused because it was after curfew and she should wait for her parents, who were due to arrive the next morning.
By the next morning, however, she was found dead in her room and her skin had turned blue. The university administration allegedly called Arooj a drug addict and her death a result of overdose.
Students of the university have been carrying out protests and demonstrations for change in the administration’s shameful behavior and archaic policies
It’s said that the administration is locking students up in hostels and preventing them from speaking up.
This case wasn’t only about the negligent warden but also the university’s attempt at hiding the entire incident, and then calling the student a drug addict
Instead of owning up to their fault, the administration raised questions on the girl’s character and also said that she suffered from a heart condition that the university was unaware of.
A student found Dead in Rawalpindi Post Graduate college Satellite Town…Fellow students protesting saying college management is involved…Management Claims student was a heart paitient…POST MORTEM report will hopefully solve the mystery #Rawalpindi
— Aleena Farooq Shayk (@FarooqAleena) September 28, 2018
According to her friends, Arooj’s mother wasn’t even made aware that her daughter had passed away.
Her friends report that Arooj’s family kept insisting on shifting Arooj to the hospital because the university administration refused to tell her family that she had passed away. The news of Arooj’s death was given to her mother by her friends, rather than the administration.
till 9am Arooj's family kept asking to take her to the Hospital.
One of my friend told her Uncle that
*she's DEAD already. The damn administration is lying to yu guys.*
#justiceforaroojfatima pic.twitter.com/XuMPkUSrHH— Meryem (@Merriyu_m) September 28, 2018
The administration’s claims of Arooj being a heart patient were also rubbished by her uncle.
To save face, the administration had blamed Arooj’s pre-existing heart condition that the university was unaware of but her uncle refuted those claims.
Now check out the video of her.uncle saying that she wasn't a heart patient. What a liar. ABH BOLO KE SUB JHOOT BOL RAHE HEIN#JusticeForAroojFatima pic.twitter.com/PnKIBOcHfT
— Gone Girl (@TheBon_Viveur) September 28, 2018
What’s horrifying about this entire situation is that Arooj’s friends and roommates were locked in a room
Her friends and roommates were allegedly threatened and pressurized to say that Arooj had committed suicide.
Girls are being threatened to not speak about. I want higher authorities to take notice of this. Unko lock kar dia hai aik room mein taa ke wo sach na bol sakein. #JusticeForAroojFatima pic.twitter.com/Q7ljAaOWeR
— Gone Girl (@TheBon_Viveur) September 28, 2018
Since the incident, a lot of the students are coming forward and testifying to the fact that Arooj died due to the negligence of the university administration.
THIS SYSTEM SUCKS. I also had been there in the same hostel for 2yrs, have seen the management at their worst,
Those pathetic low life creatures were never bothered abt our health. #justiceforaroojfatima#JusticeForUrooj— Meryem (@Merriyu_m) September 28, 2018
Posting it again because of some security issue. How this warden has treated the girls in the past. Suniye aik hostelite ki zubani#JusticeForAroojFatima pic.twitter.com/oGjaEgRNGL
— Gone Girl (@TheBon_Viveur) September 28, 2018
Students are also coming forward with proof that the administration tried to stop students from saying anything about the incident.
Students of the university made videos and posted about the incident on social media but they were reprimanded by their teachers for doing so.
Teachers have come out of their caves to defend the faulty administration. Texting ex students to shut the fuck up about the incident. Woooow such morality, much wow. This woman is shaming my friend for speaking out. First image is of an fb post.#JusticeForAroojFatima pic.twitter.com/bkGYM8BLTq
— Gone Girl (@TheBon_Viveur) September 28, 2018
A teacher, Tayyaba Bukhari, allegedly assaulted girls to stop them from making videos or protesting
The students who made videos or spoke about the incident publicly, also claimed that they were threatened with suspension and assault.
Hai koi jawab is darindagi ka? #JusticeForAroojFatima pic.twitter.com/RIEJva0Xlm
— Gone Girl (@TheBon_Viveur) September 28, 2018
Girls are being threatened to not speak about. I want higher authorities to take notice of this. Unko lock kar dia hai aik room mein taa ke wo sach na bol sakein. #JusticeForAroojFatima pic.twitter.com/Q7ljAaOWeR
— Gone Girl (@TheBon_Viveur) September 28, 2018
The teacher in green is Tayyaba Bukhari. She assaulted a student who was trying to make a video.#JusticeForAroojFatima pic.twitter.com/ytgCU7MHU6
— Gone Girl (@TheBon_Viveur) September 28, 2018
today A teacher from English department *Tayyaba bukhari* assaulted the protesters.
— Meryem (@Merriyu_m) September 28, 2018
The University has also allegedly covered up rape allegations in the past.
Alumni and current students of the university said they did not expect something from a university that has protected rapists to maintain its image.
Teachers assualting students for speaking out the truth. This college has covered rape case in the past, what else you can expect from the administration. She died because an insect bit her and the warden said "mar gaye toh dafna dein gein subah" pic.twitter.com/ofjmBWHsKB
— Gone Girl (@TheBon_Viveur) September 28, 2018
Needless to say, people are more than just pissed off about the shocking situation
The inhumanity and negligence with which Arooj was treated is shocking to a lot of people.
I can't even find the words to describe the degeneration of humanity, where your school treats you like just another burden. #JusticeForAroojFatima
— Feeha Jamshed (@FeehaJamshed) September 28, 2018
#JusticeForAroojFatima because if she died today tomorrow it could be anyone of us. The reason of her death doesn't matter. What matters is how inhumane the warden and the teachers have been. Justice must be served. @ImranKhanPTI
— Pakistani. (@amina_mehboob) September 28, 2018
Some people also believe that this incident raises concerns about the administration’s sexist attitudes and that a boy would’ve been allowed to go to the hospital.
It is a commonly known fact and practice that boys are allowed more freedom in hostels. This biased freedom has cost the life of bright, young student.
We want justice. If there was a boy instead of Arooj then hostel management would definitely allowed him. Sick mentality of our society. Aakhir kab tak zulm ka shikaar rahengi masoom larkiyan?
I really want CJP to take some action. #JusticeForAroojFatima— Kinza_khan (@Kinzakh64974374) September 28, 2018
What if men's hostels had all these hostel timings
and a boy would've died because izzat
and larkey raat ko bahir nahi nikalteyThen what #JusticeForAroojFatima #JusticeForUrooj #JusticeForArooj
— Angry Feminist 🏳🌈 (@MagicoAeman) September 28, 2018
if they were boys they would have broken authority's nose n bones but we still respected those unrespectable teachers..#JusticeForAroojFatima#rawalpindi#justiceforurroj
— faRiha (@fariehaAli) September 28, 2018
Due to the social media outrage, CM Punjab has supposedly taken notice of the incident.
CM punjab Has taken the notice lets hope for the good.
each n every one responsible for this should be punished.— Meryem (@Merriyu_m) September 28, 2018
It is important to note that all the justice in the world cannot bring Arooj back. What happened yesterday can only be confirmed after the autopsy reports. The resulting attitude of silence and lack of an official statement from the University of Gujrat administration and alleged threatening of students is shameful, at least. It is also a reflection of our society which insists on curbing the individuality and agency of women.
University policies in Pakistan are problematic as we’ve seen with NUST’s smoking policies or Bahria’s ‘six-inch’ rule fiasco, recently. What’s even more problematic are hostel policies, especially for women. Most government hostels in Pakistan have a timed curfew for women, and anyone who is late or has to stay out late, is answerable to their parents. Hostel authorities insist on calling parents, exempting themselves of all responsibility and treating adult women without the dignity and equality that they deserve.
Arooj was a bright light that was extinguished too soon but the sheer force with which her fellow students stood up for her, is highly commendable. All we can do, is hope that Arooj’s mother gets the answers and justice she deserves. Let’s also hope that incidents like this allow us to collectively work, as a society, towards granting women their rightful freedom.
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