Employees Blockade Sonali Bank CUET Branch Following Disruption in Salary Disbursal
New CUET VC Withholds September Salaries and Festival Allowances of 1,087 Staff
- Newly appointed VC Prof. Dr. Sheikh Shariful Alam suspends salaries for 367 faculty, 208 officers, and 512 staff
- Employees staged a blockade at Sonali Bank's CUET branch on Wednesday (October 7) demanding full payment
- VC deems non-approved bills illegal under the CUET Act 2003, while Officers' Association terms it arbitrary
The ongoing deadlock at Chittagong University of Engineering and Technology (CUET) escalated further after newly appointed Vice-Chancellor Professor Dr. Sheikh Shariful Alam instructed Sonali Bank to withhold the September salaries and festival allowances of 1,087 teachers, officers, and employees. The letter was officially issued to the Manager of Sonali Bank's CUET Branch on Tuesday (October 6).
In his directive, the Vice-Chancellor cited Section 13(7) of the CUET Act 2003, asserting that financial transactions conducted without explicit VC approval are illegal. Following the partial release of lower-grade staff salaries while holding back officer and faculty payments, aggrieved employees staged a blockade at the bank branch on Wednesday (October 7) at 11:30 AM. Bank officials subsequently processed payments to diffuse the situation by 12:45 PM.
However, CUET Officers' Association President Engineer Syed Mohammad Ikram rejected the Vice-Chancellor's stance, clarifying that traditional protocol requires signatures from the Comptroller and Deputy Comptroller, which were duly submitted. He alleged the salary block was an attempt to break the solidarity of faculty and staff supporting the ongoing campus movement. Academic and administrative activities at CUET remain fully shut down.
//DBTech/CIH/SMP/BPO//
