The Supreme Administrative Court upheld on Monday a decision to ban interior ministry personnel from entering university campuses for security purposes.
The Zamalek Sports Club chairman had challenged a ruling issued by the administrative court in 2010 banning police from entering campuses.
The ministry of interior was tasked with securing universities until 2010; ministry personnel were therefore allowed inside campus.
The administrative court’s ruling was only implemented following the January 2011 uprising which toppled the regime of former President Hosni Mubarak. Universities then hired 'administrative security' personnel to gaurd universities.
In February 2014, an urgent matters court restored the decision tasking the police with securing universities.
A judicial source told Aswat Masriya that the Supreme Administrative Court’s ruling takes precedence over that of the urgent matters court, since the latter lacks the required jurisdiction to rule on the matter.
University campuses have witnessed unprecedented violence throughout the past academic year, with at least 16 students killed amid on-campus protests, according to the Association for Freedom of Thought and Expression's (AFTE) Student Observatory.
The pro-Mohamed Mursi "Students against the coup" movement has been organising protests against the former Islamist president's military ouster throughout the past academic year as well as this year. Protests have often devolved into clashes with security forces.
A law student at the University of Alexandria was reported dead on October 21 due to wounds sustained during on-campus violence during the first week of the year.
Minister of Higher Education Sayed Abdel Khalek hired the private security company on September 24 to guard 12 public universities during the current academic year. Strict security measures adopted by Falcon at the university gates during the first week of the year nevertheless triggered violence from the students, who became frustrated with their delayed entrance into campus.
