KUET Crisis Casts Shadow over New Year Celebrations
While the rest of the country welcomed Pohela Boishakh with joy and festivities, students of Khulna University of Engineering and Technology (KUET) remained untouched by the celebrations. Far from donning colorful attire or joining processions, a group of students spent the night under the open sky in front of the university's administrative building. They brought prayer mats from the campus mosque to sit and wait in the veranda, enduring extreme heat. Several students have already fallen ill due to the sweltering conditions. Despite all odds, around 20 to 25 students continued their sit-in, vowing not to leave until their demands were met.
The students accused the university authorities of locking the bathrooms in the administrative building since the previous night, forcing them to use facilities in nearby buildings. They also complained of harassment by security personnel when leaving campus for food or other necessities, and said many students were prevented from re-entering the campus in the morning.
“We haven't been able to celebrate Pohela Boishakh properly in the past five years due to Ramadan coinciding with the festival,” lamented one student. “This year, we hoped to celebrate it. But sadly, we have to spend the day of Bangla New Year protesting in front of the administrative building demanding the reopening of our dormitories.”
Amid these tensions, protesting students held a demonstration march around 7 PM. The procession began in front of the administrative building, circled the "Durbar Bangla" sculpture, and returned to the original site, where the students resumed their sit-in. Meanwhile, an emergency syndicate meeting began inside the administrative building to address the situation. As of the latest updates, the meeting was still ongoing.
Following the march, students held a press briefing in front of the administrative building. A student representative read a written statement, saying, “At noon, we were informed via the Assistant Director of the Office of Student Welfare that an emergency syndicate meeting would be held at 7 PM. We are hopeful that the university administration will take a student-friendly decision. We expect an official notice tonight announcing the reopening of the dormitories so that we can sleep peacefully in our rooms instead of under the open sky, being bitten by mosquitoes. Let the halls be opened for us.” The students also warned of intensifying their protest if their demands were not met.
The statement further emphasized that the administration should not act against general students for political gains. “If such intentions are found, we will call for tougher actions,” the briefing stated.
Shaheduzzaman Sheikh, Public Relations Officer (additional duty) of the Public Relations, Information and Publication Department of KUET, confirmed the emergency meeting. “The meeting, chaired by Vice-Chancellor Professor Dr. Mohammad Masud, started at 7 PM on Monday. The overall situation will be discussed. Decisions will be announced after the meeting concludes,” he said.
At the time of reporting, students remained in front of the administrative building, awaiting the outcome of the syndicate meeting. They have said that their next course of action will depend on the meeting’s decisions.
On Sunday, April 13 at around 3 PM, nearly 150 students defied administrative orders and entered the campus as part of a pre-scheduled program. They began their sit-in in front of the administrative building and later submitted a formal appeal demanding the reopening of the dormitories, giving the authorities an 8 PM deadline. When no decision came within the stipulated time, they stayed overnight on campus grounds.
Students at the protest site stated that around 11 AM on Monday, Assistant Director of the Office of Student Welfare, Professor Raju Ahmed, informed them about the 7 PM emergency syndicate meeting but did not disclose the meeting agenda. He also requested the students to end their sit-in, which they declined.
