Rabindra University authorities  suspended teacher Farhana Yeasmin Baten from academic and administrative activities for three academic years for trimming the hair of its 14 students. An office order on the final decision of the university authorities, signed by registrar Sohrab Hossain, was hanged on the notice board on Sunday. According to the office order, Farhana, an associate professor of Cultural Heritage and Bangladesh Studies Department, has been instructed to refrain from all academic and administrative activities including taking classes and exams, until the end of the academic activities of 2017-18, 2018-19 and 2019-20 academic years. Read:Haircut humiliation: Probe body recommends action against teacher Farhana Regarding the decision, students, who have been demanding termination of the teacher,  said that it would have been better if such a decision had been taken by the Academic Council at the beginning of the movement. However, the university authorities took such a decision in favor of accused teacher Farhana Yeasmin, the students alleged. Earlier on September 26, Farhana Yeasmin Baten, also the chair of the Cultural Heritage and Bangladesh Studies Department, was charged with forcibly cutting the hair of 16 students. The following day, Nazmul Hasan Tuhin, a student, tried to take his own life by consuming sleeping pills, prompting the university students to burst into protests. They also boycotted all the exams and classes on September 28. Amid the protests, Farhana relinquished her three administrative positions on the same day. Read: RUB haircut humiliation: Students on indefinite hunger strike demanding termination of accused teacher Later, a five-member probe body was formed to investigate the incident. The university finally suspended Farhana on September 30. On October 24, Shamim Hossain, a third-year student of Cultural Heritage and Bangladesh Studies, reportedly attempted to kill himself by swallowing poison demanding termination of Farhana. Two days later, a probe committee formed by Rabindra University recommended taking action against its teacher Farhana for trimming the hair of its 14 students saying that it has found the ‘proof of her offence’.

The probe committee formed by Rabindra University has recommended taking action against its teacher Farhana Yeasmin Baten for trimming the hair of its 14 students saying that it has found the ‘proof of her offence’. Registrar of the university Sohrab Ali told UNB on Monday that they received the probe report on Thursday. After receiving the report, a syndicate meeting was called on Friday. Read: RUB haircut humiliation: Students on indefinite hunger strike demanding termination of accused teacher An investigative team of the University Grants Commission (UGC) will visit the university campus on Wednesday and the final decision on the fate of Farhana, a teacher of Cultural Heritage and Bangladesh Studies department, will be taken after that, Sohrab said. Meanwhile, the university students resumed their protests on Sunday demanding that the teacher be terminated. The protestors on that day confined 30 teachers and staff of the university to two academic buildings for at least 10 long hours -- from 2pm-1.30 am.

Protesting students of Rabindra University Bangladesh went into an indefinite hunger strike from Friday night as the syndicate committee didn’t permanently suspend the teacher who forcefully cut the hair of 14 students. Nazmul Hasan Papon, spokesperson for the students told journalists on Saturday that the probe committee had submitted the report to Registrar Sohrab Ali on Thursday evening without the disposition of accused teacher of the Cultural Heritage and Bangladesh Studies Department, Farhana Yasmin Baten. Followed by this, the syndicate committee held a meeting at the residence building office of the university on Friday afternoon, he said. However it was adjourned without any decision on the incident, he said. “When we contacted the treasurer and incumbent VC Abdul Latif, he said a decision will be taken in this regard at the next syndicate meeting. But he couldn’t give an exact date for the meeting,” said Najmul Hossain. This has forced the students to take position for an indefinite hunger strike at the RUB campus on Friday night and they decided to continue the protest until Professor Baten got terminated, he said. Read: RUB haircuts probe: Farhana gets till Oct 21 to give her side Meanwhile, Treasurer Abdul Latif said the meeting was adjourned without a decision as the committee didn’t receive all the information. “A decision will be made following the legal procedures in the next syndicate meeting,” he said. On September 26, Farhana instructed an office assistant to trim the hair of 14 first-year students as they were entering examination halls, apparently for ignoring her previous instructions to get haircuts. Unable to bear the humiliation, Nazmul Hasan Tuhin, 25, a student of the department, consumed sleeping pills the following day in an attempt to take his own life. Although she submitted her resignation as department chair, assistant proctor, and member of the proctorial board, Farhana has continued to deny the allegations and claimed the charges against her were all fabricated, as she rejected the request of a few students to defer the exam. On September 30, the RUB students staged protests demanding the termination of the teacher. Read: Haircut humiliation: Rabindra University suspends teacher Farhana The following day, the High Court asked the RUB VC and registrar to take steps against those involved in the incident and to file a report within a month. Later in the day, the RUB authorities suspended Farhana from her teaching position as well. On October 2, following assurance by Education Minister Dipu Moni of launching a probe into the incident, students eased their protest and unlocked the administrative building of the university. RUB authorities formed a five-member committee led by Professor Layla Ferdous Himel to probe the incident.

A madrasha teacher has been arrested for allegedly trimming the hair of seven students of the religious school in Laxmipur. The arrest comes barely 10 days after Sirajganj-based Rabindra University teacher Farhana Yeasmin Baten was suspended for allegedly trimming the hair of 14 students as "punishment" on September 26. The Laxmipur incident took place on September 18 at Hamsadi-Kazir Dighirpar Alim Madrasha in Raipur upazila but a video of the same went viral on social media on Friday, prompting the cops to contact the parents of the students. Manjurul Kabir, the teacher, was picked up from his home in the upazila on Friday night on a complaint from a parent, police said on Saturday. READ: Haircut humiliation: Rabindra University suspends teacher Farhana "Shaheda Begum, the mother of a student, lodged a complaint at Raipur police station in this regard on Friday," said Palash Kanti Nath, additional superintendent of police. According to the case statement, the madrasha teacher had trimmed the hair of the seven students of the madrasha as they did not comply with his repeated requests of getting a haircut. READ: Haircut humiliation: Rabindra University students continue protests The accused teacher, however, claimed it was a conspiracy to defame the madrasha. "The madrasha committee is looking into it."

Students protesting the haircut humiliation at Rabindra University Bangladesh have unlocked the administrative building of university on Saturday afternoon following assurance by Education Minister Dipu Moni of launching a probe into the incident. The students said they will be there in front of the academic building until assistant proctor and chairperson of Cultural Heritage and Bangladesh Studies Department Farhana Yeasmin Baten is terminated. Shamim Hossain, spokesperson of the protesting students, said Education Minister Dr Dipu Moni listened to their demand as well as wanted to know why they are continuing the protests although the teacher has been suspended. Also read: Haircut humiliation: Rabindra University suspends teacher Farhana “She (minister) also assured that proper action will be taken against the accused teacher on the basis of the probe committee report,” said Shamim. They will end protests if they get justice from the investigation committee on Monday, or else they will go for a tougher movement, he added. On September 26, Farhana instructed an office assistant to trim the hair of 14 first-year students while they were entering examination halls as they reportedly ignored her previous instruction to have their hair cut. Unable to bear the humiliation, Nazmul Hasan Tuhin, 25, a student of the department, allegedly consumed sleeping pills the following day in an ‘attempt to take his own life’. However, Farhana denied the allegation and claimed that it was just propaganda against her as she did not defer the exam as per the request of a few students. On Thursday, the RUB students staged protests demanding termination of the teacher.   The following day, the High Court asked the RUB VC and registrar for taking steps against those involved in the incident and filing a report within a month. The court also questioned why legal action will not be taken against associate professor Farhana, the chairman of Cultural Heritage and Bangladesh Studies Department of RUB, assistant professors Rajib Adhikari and Jannatul Ferdous Moon. The court also said why direction to compensate the humiliated students with Tk 20 lakh each should not be given. Also read: Haircut humiliation: Rabindra University students continue protests Amid student protests, Farhana quit the three additional positions of assistant proctor, head of the department and syndicate member. On Friday, the RUB authorities suspended Farhana, and formed a five-member committee earlier to probe the incident.

Protests continued to grip Rabindra University on Thursday  against a teacher who allegedly ordered a forcible haircut of 14 students who were about to sit for final examination. Student protesters demanded that controversial teacher Farzana Yasmin Baten be permanently sacked from the university for humiliating their peers. Though she resigned as the chairman of Department of Cultural Heritage and Bangladesh Studies, assistant proctor, and a member of the proctorial board, the gestures did little to pacify the protesters. Four students named Habib, Zahid, Sirat and Zakaria of Cultural Heritage and Bangladesh Study department, who went on a fast-unto-death hunger strike, fell sick on Thursday, the second day of their protest. Among them, Habib was admitted to Shajadpur Upazila Health Complex while the rest were given first aid.