DUET Deadlock Deepens as Students Continue VC Protest Blockade
Protests at Dhaka University of Engineering & Technology intensified for the fifth consecutive day on Monday as students continued their movement rejecting the newly appointed vice-chancellor.
From early morning on May 18, students enforced a previously announced “DUET Blockade” programme by shutting down all entrance gates of the university campus. Academic and administrative activities at the university have remained largely suspended due to the ongoing demonstrations.
Protesting students locked the university’s main gate and barred entry to everyone except students. Demonstrators said the blockade was primarily aimed at preventing the newly appointed vice-chancellor from entering the campus. Students also staged protest marches and rallies throughout the morning, while a large number of police personnel remained stationed outside the campus.
The protesters alleged that they would not accept a vice-chancellor “under whose tenure students’ blood was shed” on the campus.
However, the university administration stated that the newly appointed vice-chancellor had already officially joined office and carried out administrative duties on Sunday.
According to university sources, Professor Dr. Mohammad Iqbal of Shahjalal University of Science and Technology was appointed vice-chancellor of DUET on May 14. Following the issuance of the appointment notification that night, students launched protests beginning around 9:30 pm.
As part of Monday’s blockade programme, students occupied the main entrance gate and continued demonstrations demanding cancellation of the appointment.
The protesting students further alleged that around noon on Sunday, activists affiliated with the student wing of the BNP and several outsiders entered the campus in support of the newly appointed vice-chancellor, triggering violent clashes with general students. The confrontation reportedly involved heavy brickbat throwing between the two sides.
Demonstrators argued that DUET is a specialised engineering university and therefore its vice-chancellor should be selected from among the institution’s own qualified and senior faculty members rather than from outside the university. They vowed to continue the movement until their demands are met.
Officer-in-Charge Aminul Islam of Gazipur Metropolitan Police said tensions over the vice-chancellor appointment had been escalating for several days. He added that Sunday’s clashes between rival student groups left 14 to 15 people injured, including police members stationed outside the gate, Gazipur Sadar Upazila Executive Officer Sazzat Hossain, and several students. Preparations are underway to file a case over the incident, he said.
In a separate press release, the university administration confirmed that Professor Mohammad Iqbal officially joined the university on Sunday and had already begun carrying out his official responsibilities.
DBTech/SA/MI/OR
