KUET lifts hall closures and rescinds suspensions as UGC team begins probe
Khulna University of Engineering & Technology (KUET) will reopen all six residential halls on Wednesday afternoon and has withdrawn the interim suspension orders issued against 37 students accused of involvement in the 18 February violence. The decisions were taken at an emergency 102nd syndicate meeting, according to a notice signed by Registrar Md Anisur Rahman Bhuiyan.
A three‑member fact‑finding team from the University Grants Commission—Prof Tanjim Uddin Khan of Dhaka University, Prof Saidur Rahman of BUET and Joint Secretary Ahmed Shibli of the Secondary and Higher Education Division—arrived on campus at about 11 a.m. and immediately met hunger‑striking students at the Student Welfare Centre. Despite persuading one student to leave the fast, 27 remain on hunger strike, insisting they will continue until Vice‑Chancellor Prof Dr Muhammad Mashud resigns.
After a two‑hour closed‑door session with student representatives the UGC team pledged an impartial review and said it would submit recommendations to the Ministry of Education. Students, however, expressed frustration, noting that a memorandum submitted to the chief adviser two months ago produced no visible progress.
Meanwhile seven more students reportedly fell ill on Wednesday, taking the total number of strikers needing medical attention to nine. Ambulances and a medical team are stationed outside the welfare centre.
Outside the campus, solidarity actions gathered pace. In Khulna city several organisations, including Baisamyabirudhdhi Chhatra Andolan and Inquilab Manch, announced blockades and rallies, while KU students called for class boycotts at Khulna University. In Dhaka, learners from BUET, Dhaka University, Jahangirnagar University and Jagannath University planned a 3 p.m. rally at the Raju sculpture followed by a Shahbagh blockade under the banner “#BUETStandsWithKUET”.
The student wing Jatiyatabadi Chhatra Dal issued a statement denying involvement in February’s clashes and demanding a safe, politics‑free campus, whereas Islami Chhatra Shibir’s secretary‑general Nurul Islam Saddam warned the government that “any harm to KUET students will be difficult to contain”.
Earlier this week KUET students forcibly entered locked halls after the administration had scheduled reopening for 2 May. Their single‑point demand—removal of the vice‑chancellor—remains unchanged.
