Follow UP || CUET Pays Salaries After Bank Protest

Teachers, officers and employees of Chittagong University of Engineering and Technology (CUET) have received their salaries and allowances after university employees staged a sit-in at the Sonali Bank branch on the campus over the withholding of their payments.

The salaries and allowances were paid around 12:30pm on Wednesday, October 7, about one and a half hours after the employees began their bank-protest programme at 11am. The employees later withdrew the programme after receiving confirmation that the payments had been made.

The protest was organised in response to the withholding of salaries and allowances. According to university sources, the payments had been held following an email instruction from newly appointed Vice-Chancellor Professor Sheikh Shariful Alam.

On September 21, Professor Abu Sadat Muhammad Sayem was removed as CUET vice-chancellor and Professor Sheikh Shariful Alam of Khulna University of Engineering and Technology (KUET) was appointed to the post.

Students launched a movement demanding Sayem’s reinstatement following the appointment. Teachers, officers and employees later joined a work abstention over the same demand.

Although the new vice-chancellor could not enter the campus amid the protests, he sent an email to the bank instructing it to withhold salaries and allowances of the university’s teachers, officers and employees.

According to university sources, Vice-Chancellor Sheikh Shariful Alam emailed Joyanta Bhowmik, manager of Sonali Bank’s CUET branch, on September 29, instructing the bank to withhold the salaries of teachers, officers and employees.

On October 5, Bhowmik sent a reply to the vice-chancellor, informing him that the bank had received salary bills bearing the signatures of the university’s comptroller and deputy comptroller.

In response, the vice-chancellor sent another email stating that sending salary bills to the bank without his prior approval was “unauthorised and illegal”.

In the email, he cited Section 13(7) of the CUET Act 2003, stating that any financial transaction without the explicit approval of the vice-chancellor would be legally invalid.

He also stated that neither the vice-chancellor nor the university authorities would bear any legal, administrative or financial liability if the unauthorised transaction resulted in financial irregularities, an undesirable situation or legal complications.

The email further stated that the two officials concerned would bear sole and full responsibility for any violation resulting from the preparation and submission of unauthorised documents. It also held the Sonali Bank authorities responsible for the matter. Salaries and allowances were subsequently withheld.

Jamal Uddin, president of the CUET Employees’ Association, said salaries had traditionally been paid on the signatures of the comptroller and assistant comptroller.

“But this time, the new vice-chancellor withheld the salaries. We staged the bank protest in response. Meanwhile, we received messages confirming our salary payments. Following our demand, the salaries were paid according to CUET’s traditional procedure,” he said.

Joyanta Bhowmik, manager of Sonali Bank’s CUET branch, said the bank had informed its higher authorities about the employees’ protest.

“Later, the higher authorities instructed us to make the salary and allowance payments. Accordingly, the salaries and allowances of all teachers, officers and employees were paid,” he said.

The salary dispute comes amid continued tension at CUET over the change in vice-chancellor. Students have continued their movement demanding the reinstatement of Professor Abu Sadat Muhammad Sayem.

//DBTech/CIH/SMP/MIST//