Protest
SUST: Students reject closure notice, declare VC 'unwanted' on campus
Students of Shahjalal University of Science and Technology (SUST) protesting the police action against them on Sunday today announced its Vice-Chancellor as unwanted on campus.
The students also rejected the notice of shutting the university for an indefinite period and direction to leave the halls during a meeting held at Gol Chattar in the campus at 1pm.
The students announced they will continue their protest staying on the campus.
Also read: SUST students now demanding VC’s resignation
From Monday morning, SUST students in protest staged demonstrations demanding the resignation of VC Farid Uddin Ahmed protesting the ‘police action on them’.
They started gathering at the campus although the university was declared closed for an indefinite period on Sunday following a clash between students and police.
‘Police action’ on SUST students: Protest rallies held at DU
Different student organisations staged demonstrations on Dhaka University campus on Monday protesting the ‘police action’ on the students of Shahajalal University of Science and Technology (SUST).
Pragatishil Student Jote, an alliance of left-leaning organisations, held a protest rally at the foot of anti-terrorism Raju memorial sculpture at around 12.30 pm to express their solidarity with of the protesting students of SUST.
Dipak Shil, General secretary of Bangladesh Chhatra Union, said, " We observed the 50th anniversary of our independence but out universities are still under the clutches of culprits. Yesterday, SUST VC ordered police action on the students. Earlier, they were attacked by Chhatra League men too."
Also read: SUST students now demanding VC’s resignation
He condemned the attack on the students and demanded the removal of the SUST VC.
SUST shut after police-student clash, despite controversial provost's resignation
Shahjalal University of Science and Technology (SUST) has been forced to shut following a serious clash on campus between police and protesting students Sunday.
The decision was taken at an emergency syndicate meeting held on Sunday evening and students were asked to leave the residential halls by Monday 12 pm.
Meanwhile the provost of Begum Sirajunnesa Chowdhury Hall Zafrin Ahmed, the person at the centre of the disquiet prevailing on the campus, resigned from her post citing health issues. Dr Nazia Chowdhury of Physics department has been appointed in her place, said Farid Uddin Ahmed, Vice Chancellor of SUST.
Also read: SUST VC attacked and confined by protesting students
Removal of Zafrin Ahmed as provost of the residential hall for female students was one of the principal demands of students protesting on the campus.
KUET BCL tries to distance itself from professor’s death after meeting
Bangladesh Chhatra League's Khulna University of Engineering and Technology (Kuet) unit, whose members stand accused of having played some role in the untimely death of a professor of the Electrical and Electronics Engineering (EEE) department of the university on Tuesday, have sought refuge behind a claim of 'dirty politics' leading the finger of blame to point at them.
The university Chhatra League tried to present their version of what transpired when a horde of their members, also residents of the university's Lalon Shah Hall, met with Prof Md Selim Hossain in the hours before he passed away on the day of his death, through a press conference at Khulna Press Club on Friday.
READ: KUET declared closed till Dec 13, students asked to leave halls by Friday
KUET BCL said the image of the ruling party's student front is being tarnished in this way.
In a written statement, Sadman Nahyan Sejan, general secretary of KUET Chhatra League, said Dr Md Selim Hossain of the Electrical and Electronics Engineering (EEE) department was appointed as the provost of Lalan Shah Hall.
“Whenever a new provost is appointed, the students of the final batch of the residential hall are introduced to the provost by the Student Welfare Committee.”
Sadman Nahyan tried to portray their reasons behind meeting Prof Selim Hossain that day as completely routine
He said Prof Selim scheduled a meeting in his office at 12 noon on Tuesday to get acquainted with the students and inform them about the various activities in the hall. Students were approximately 40 minutes late to attend the scheduled meeting after class. “He was later met on the way and informed of the reason for the delay. Then he told us to come to his office. After the professor unlocked his office, the students entered with his permission.”
BCL leader Sadman further said that as there was not enough space for all the students, Prof Selim Hossain asked the seniors to sit inside and the juniors to wait outside for a while. After exchanging greetings with the seniors, he called the students waiting outside and brought them inside.
“At that time, he told them, he had work in the lab at half-past two. He would go to the hall in the evening and meet the students. And then he left,” said Sadman.
Sadman added, "We do not know the exact cause of death of Prof Selim Hossain. However, according to the death certificate, it is known that he died of a stroke. He was the guardian of the hall. We went there to talk to him about the hall.”
“One party is painting us as criminals by focusing on our meeting with Prof Selim Hossain. They have also given statements regarding this. I am demanding the vice-chancellor take action against us after scrutinizing the CCTV footage of the meeting.”
Deputy Communications and Information Secretary of the University BCL committee Jamiur Rahman, Assistant Editor Ahsanul Abedin, and Sub-Library Secretary Mahmudul Hasan were present at the press conference.
Later, the leaders and workers of BCL took up positions in front of the administrative building while an emergency meeting of the university's Syndicate was in progress. They submitted a memorandum to the vice-chancellor demanding five-points.
The main thrust of their demands is to not ban student politics at KUET. They also include the formation of a probe committee consisting of administrative officers, judicial magistrates and teachers from the university to uncover the truth behind Prof Selim Hossain's death, and to ensure the maximum punishment for any BCL members found to be guilty.
They also demanded compensation of Tk 1 crore for Prof Selim's family within a month, as well as the offer of a permanent job for at least one member of his family at KUET.
Forced to close
UNB has reviewed CCTV footage from at least three different locations that have been leaked to the media.
Footage of the path leading away from the EEE Building (Camera 1) shows the meeting outside the building and the professor turning back to lead dozens of male students, Sadman among them, back into the building, up the stairs (CAM2) and into his office (CAM3).
The third camera also captures their departure from his office, and minutes later his own, locking the door behind him. It cannot be said that there are any visible signs of distress on him physically at that point, as again he walks away crisply.
READ: Kuet dorms to reopen on October 22
But the allegations raised are of 'mental torture and harassment'.
KUET was declared closed till December 13 as tensions spread through the campus over the death of Prof Selim Hossain.
Students were asked to leave their residential halls by 4pm on Friday, in an order signed by the Registrar (Acting) of the University, Engineer Md Anisur Rahman Bhuiyan.
The decision to close was taken at the emergency meeting of the KUET Syndicate on Friday, after the untimely death of the professor - in the aftermath, allegedly, of mental torture and harassment by Chhatra League members - triggered unrest on the campus.
According to his fellow faculty members, Prof Selim died hours after some Chhatra League activists led by Sadman Nahyan Sejan confined him in his office and mentally tortured him to accept their choice as dining manager of Lalan Shah Hall for December.
CCTV footage from outside the teacher's office room showed several students, belonging to Sadman’s group, entered his room around 12:30 pm on Tuesday. It is not true though that the students led the way. If anything, he walked well ahead of them.
His colleagues further alleged Prof Selim was subjected to abuse, humiliation and threats while confined.
Meanwhile, Professor Selim's family members said that the teacher reached his residence near the campus around 2:00 pm after the incident on Tuesday and went to the washroom. But when he was taking too long to come out, they broke down the door to enter the bathroom and found him in an unconscious state.
Although they rushed him to Khulna Medical College Hospital, doctors there could only declare him dead.
Following the incident, the teachers' union on Thursday boycotted academic activities demanding the accused students’ permanent expulsion from the university through a fair investigation.
UP member killing sparks protests in Gaibandha
Local people on Saturday blocked Gaibandha-Sundarganj road at Laxmipur Bazar in Sadar upazila demanding exemplary punishment of killer of newly-elected member of Laxmipur union parishad Abdur Rauf Master.
They took to the streets in the morning and staged demonstrations protesting the killing of Abdur Rauf .
Read: RUB protest: Student on hunger strike tries to kill self in public
They also placed logs on the road and set a tyre afire around 10 am, halting traffic movement for about four and a half hours.
Earlier, on Friday night, Abdur Rauf, a newly elected member of Laxmipur union parishad, was killed by a youth in Gobindapur village of Sadar upazila.
Police claimed to have arrested a man, identified as Rezaul, in connection with the murder.
Touhidul Islam, superintendent of Gaibandha Police, said “A compliant was lodged with Sadar Police on Saturday and the attacker might have killed him over previous enmity.”
Read: UK carrier strike group sails to Bangladesh
Counter-protest: DU admission seekers block Dhaka-Aricha highway
Vehicular traffic on the busy Dhaka-Aricha highway came to a halt for nearly an hour on Friday, as candidates seeking admission to seven colleges under Dhaka University blocked the high-speed corridor in protest against the indefinite nation-wide bus and truck strike.
The admission seekers gathered on the Dhaka-Aricha highway around 8am and blocked both its carriageways, halting traffic. This was after they faced trouble reaching the entrance examination centers owing to the public transport strike.
They were soon joined by a number of government bank job aspirants who faced a difficult time finding alternative modes of transport to reach their exam centres.
Also read:Commuters suffer as buses stay off roads
Hindu community stages protest against communal violence
Hundreds of protesters from ten Hindu organisations on Friday staged demonstration at Shahbag protesting recent attacks on temples, vandalism of idols, arson and violence against Hindu community.
The International Society for Krishna Consciousness (Iskcon) led the events in front of the National Museum in Shahbag.
Read:Protection of Hindus, others must be ensured: AI
Poets, artists, journos unite against communal violence in Bangladesh
Over 200 poets, writers, artists and journalists on Tuesday staged a protest in the capital against the recent communal violence in Bangladesh.
The protesters gathered outside Bangladesh National Museum in Shahbagh in the afternoon and demanded that the perpetrators of the communal attacks in various parts of the country, including Rangpur and Cumilla, be brought to justice.
Their eight-point demands also included taking prompt steps to prevent communal and sexist remarks on social media.
The protest was anchored by recitation artist Shahadat Hossain Nipu. Also present were writer Anisul Haque, filmmaker Amitabh Reza, poet Chanchal Ashraf, journalist Ahmad Mostafa Kamal, writer Jharna Rahman, filmmaker Masud Pathik, actor Moutushi Biswas, poet Tokon Tagore, and author-journalist Humayun Kabir Dhali.
Speakers at the protest site claimed that the recent communal violence was nothing but a conspiracy, based on the rumours that the Holy Quran had been disrespected at a puja mandap in Cumilla.
"It has become clear to us that similar occurrences are occurring as a result of the government's impunity culture. We've seen in the past how the Hindu and Buddhist communities have been targeted and attacked purposefully based on false rumours spread on social media, none of which has been thoroughly examined and the culprits have not been brought to punishment," the speakers said.
"Bangladesh is a country of communal harmony. In 1971, Hindus, Muslims, Buddhists and Christians of all faiths fought side by side and made Bangladesh independent; but in the last 50 years after independence, every government has abandoned the spirit of the Liberation War to go to power by colluding with communal forces or to go to shameless competition for power. Article 32 of the constitution has given way to the formation of religion-based political parties," they alleged.
Renowned writer Swakrito Noman raised eight-point demands at the event, on behalf of the organisers.
The demands include identifying the communal attackers in different parts of the country centring on this year's Durga Puja and arresting and prosecuting them immediately; identifying the real reasons behind the communal attacks in Ramu, Nasirnagar, Shalla, Cumilla, Hajiganj, Noakhali and Rangpur; taking steps to stop communal and misogynistic statements on social media including Facebook, YouTube and Waz Mahfil; and the abolition of 'state religion' from the Constitution.
Protesting recent communal attacks, Hindus issue 24 hrs ultimatum before withdrawing Shahbagh blockade
Thousands of protesters on Monday blocked traffic at Shahbagh intersection for sveral hours to denounce the recent violence against minority Hindus in different parts of the country.
Joined by Dhaka University students the protesters from the Hindu community threatened to continue the blockade indefinitely.
However, around 2pm, they called off the sit-in programme following assurance from the authorities.
Also read: Quran desecration: Protesters clash with police in Baitul Mukarram area
The protesters were seen chanting slogans demanding a separate ministry for the minorities and asking the administration to answer why the temples were attacked.
Their demands include:
Formation of a special tribunal and investigate the negligence of local administration, ensure exemplary punishment for those involved in the attacks ,formation of separate ministry and commission for the country's minorities ,properly compensate the victim families and businesses , povide necessary treatment to those who got injured in the attacks , immediately rebuild the damaged temples, houses, and other establishments , make new law to ensure highest punishment for communal attacks , allocate 15 per cent of the country's GDP for minority communities,, revamp Hindu Religious Welfare Trust, release all Hindus arrested since the 13 October incident and compensate them , take measures to prevent the spread of communalism and prevent extremists and anti-independence forces from tarnishing Bangladesh's image.
They vowed to continue their protest until their demands are met.
Also read: Hindu people demonstrate in Noakhali
The blockade triggered
severe traffic gridlock in Shahbagh, Paltan, Science Lab, Elephant Road, Bangla Motor and the adjacent areas.
Earlier on 13 September, a reported demeaning of the holy Quran stoked communal tensions in Cumilla.
Following the incident, attacks were carried out on puja mandaps, temples, houses, and business establishments belonging to the Hindu community in at least 10 districts of the country.
Bus services in Chandpur halt amid transport workers’ protest
Transport workers in Chandpur went on a wildcat strike on Monday morning halting bus services in the district in protest of a driver's death allegedly due to negligence.
The sudden stoppage caused huge sufferings to the commuters and long-distance travellers.
As many as 400 bus services on Dhaka, Cumilla, Lakshmipur, Sylhet, and Chattogram routes from the district remained suspended while workers vandalized a part of the municipal bus terminal during a demonstration.
Also read: Protest in Chattogram over construction of elevated expressway
Later police took control of the situation but the buses stood still at the terminal till writing this report, said police sources.
Due to the sudden suspension, the office and daily commuters had to pay double fare to reach their destinations by auto rickshaws or some other means.
Officer-in-Charge of Sadar model police station Md Abdur Rashid said, on Sunday a bus named Padma lost control and hit a roadside tree in Chandpur sadar leaving a child dead and 10 injured including the bus driver Mizan Molla, 30.
Severely injured Mizan was referred to Dhaka Medical College Hospital after giving primary treatment in district hospital but he succumbed to his injuries on Sunday night.
Also read: Student protest causes traffic disruption in Barishal
Angered by Mizan’s death the transport workers in Chandpur started demonstrating Monday claiming that the driver died due to lack of treatment. They also demanded solution for infrastructure problems in the terminal and resignation of transport leaders.
Police held a meeting with the bus owners and workers association to solve the issue. Municipal mayor will also hold a meeting with the transport workers’ representatives, said leaders of the workers Kamal Patwary and Faruque Dewan.