DU students protest delay in appointments of 2 Pro VCs

A group of Dhaka University (DU) students staged a demonstration today, protesting the government’s indifference and delay in appointing two Pro Vice Chancellors at Dhaka University. The protest took place at the Raju Sculpture on the Dhaka University campus at 3 pm.

The students alleged that President Shahabuddin Ahmed, who is also the Chancellor of the university, has already made the policy decision to appoint the Pro Vice Chancellors. However, they claimed that certain individuals behind the scenes are attempting to destabilize the campus by delaying the appointments and keeping the administration vacant.

The students threatened to escalate their movement if the appointments are not made soon. They submitted a memorandum to the newly appointed Vice Chancellor, Prof. Dr. Niaz Ahmed Khan, expressing their concerns over the delay.

The memorandum stated, "As ordinary students of the university, we are deeply concerned about this delay, which has persisted even after the policy decision was made seven days ago. We suspect that there is a political plot or conspiracy behind the delay in issuing the recruitment notification for the nominated teachers, despite their qualifications and acceptance by the students."

The document further asserted, "We believe that the nominations were made based on merit and ability. We trust in their capabilities and experience and hope that no discrimination or injustice will be tolerated in our inclusive country, which has been shaped by the mass uprising and the blood of numerous martyrs."

Rayhan Uddin, a student from the English Department, urged the administration to issue the notification as soon as possible to prevent any attempts by those supporting authoritarianism. He claimed that opposition from a group of university teachers, who allegedly met with the education adviser, might be delaying the appointments.

The students also revealed that President Shahabuddin Ahmed decided on August 26 to appoint Prof. Dr. Niaz Ahmed Khan from the Development Studies Department as Vice Chancellor (Academic), Prof. Dr. Sayema Haque Bidisha from the Economics Department as Pro-VC (Admin), and Dr. Mohammad Ismail from the Applied Chemistry Department as Pro-VC (Academic). They emphasized that the university cannot remain administration-free for much longer.