DU teachers' White Panel splits, rival committee announced

The White Panel of Dhaka University teachers, backed by BNP and Jamaat-e-Islami, has split following the announcement of rival committee.

On Monday, at a general meeting of the White Panel, Professor Dr Morshed Hasan Khan was elected as the convenor with the highest votes and professors Dr Abdus Salam and Dr Md Abul Kalam Sarkar were nominated as joint convenors for 2025 and 2026.

However, a faction of the White Panel rejected the committee, claiming that the election was "influenced" in various ways. In a press conference held at 9pm on the same day, they announced an ad-hoc committee with a 6-member advisory council and one convenor and two joint convenors.

The convenor of this committee is Professor Dr Aminul Islam Talukdar from the Department of Physics, with professors Dr Mohammad Alamujadeddin Alfeshani from the Department of Botany and Dr Mezbah-ul-Islam from the Department of Information Science and Library Management as the joint convenors.

The advisory council consists of Professor Dr Md Selim Reza from the Department of Pharmaceutical Technology, Professor Dr Md. Enamul Haque from the Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Professor Dr Md Ataur Rahman Miazi from the Department of Islamic History and Culture, Professor Dr Mohammad Shafiq Ahmed from the Department of Islamic Studies, Professor Dr Md Emran Kaiyum from the Department of Chemistry, and Professor Dr SM Mostafa Al Mamun from the Department of Electrical and Electronic Engineering.

In a written statement, Aminul Islam Talukdar said, "The current White Panel is being led by a small opportunistic clique, with professor Morshed Hasan Khan as convenor, and professors Abdus Salam and Abul Kalam Sarkar as joint convenors. Professor Morshed holds several positions in BNP. According to BNP's policy, 'one leader, one position' is a principle that White Panel's professionals seek."

"We believe that Professor Morshed is aligning with a special syndicate within the White Panel, which is raising questions," the statement said.

"The two joint convenors, professors Abdus Salam and Abul Kalam Sarkar, having been members of this clique for 10-15 years, have also lost their moral right to hold the proposed positions. In this context, the White Panel must undergo a reorganization with new leadership," the statement added.

Regarding the allegations, Dr Abdus Salam said, "As far as I know, no one has illegally influenced the election. We were nominated based on our constitution and everyone's opinion. They could not come to power, and perhaps due to this frustration, they have separated. We hope that they will also join us. We will work together again."