CUET Students Greet Teachers with Red Roses on World Teachers' Day Amid Ongoing Protest

On World Teachers' Day, instead of remaining in classrooms, students of Chittagong University of Engineering and Technology (CUET) greeted their teachers with red roses on the campus streets to appreciate their ongoing solidarity. The movement demanding the reinstatement of former Vice-Chancellor Professor Dr. Abu Sadat Muhammad Sayem reached its 14th consecutive day on Monday (5 October 2026), keeping both academic and administrative activities completely paralyzed. Alongside the students, faculty, officers, and staff observed their 7th working day of work abstention.

The day's events began at 11:00 AM with members of the CUET Teachers, Officers, and Employees Association sitting in front of the locked Vice-Chancellor's building. At around 12:30 PM, a rally was brought out from the VC building, which circled Swadhinata Chattar and ended at the Central Shaheed Minar. There, students presented red roses to their teachers to mark World Teachers' Day. Furthermore, teachers and staff have been holding daily human chains in front of the TSC. Teachers reassured students that once the movement succeeds, extra classes will be conducted on holidays to compensate for lost academic time.

Zulkarnain Mihad, a final-year mechanical engineering student, stated, "Today is World Teachers' Day. On this day, when we should be in classrooms, we are forced to stand in protest on the 14th day. To fulfill our demand, we have to stay on the streets today as well. Today, we joined the position program together with the university teachers, officers, and employees. We want a quick resolution to this problem, which is why we are uniting with them."

Speaking after the rally, CUET Controller of Examinations Dr. Md. Moinul Islam remarked, "We have been demonstrating to demand the reinstatement of Professor Dr. Abu Sadat Muhammad Sayem to the post of Vice-Chancellor. As part of this, we held a human chain today. We request the government not to delay the academic lives of the students. We are protesting completely peacefully without any vandalism or road blockades. We urge the government to accept our demands and create an environment for students to return to class."

Alongside daily rallies, human chains, and card displays, the campus walls are decorated with protest graffiti and photo displays of the movement. Protesting students continue strict guarding at the main gate to prevent the entry of the newly appointed Vice-Chancellor.

On September 21, Professor Dr. Abu Sadat Muhammad Sayem was replaced by Professor Sheikh Shariful Alam of Khulna University of Engineering and Technology (KUET) as the new VC of CUET. Students launched protests that very day against removing the VC just 56 days into his tenure. An 'all-out shutdown' program was enforced from September 22. Despite various programs including red card displays, torch processions, and mask marches, the deadlock at CUET persists on the 14th day due to a lack of resolution.

 //DBTech/Ebad Hossen/SMP/IH//