Kuet clash: Students meet with CA's personal assistant secretary, demand removal of VC
A group of students from Khulna University of Engineering and Technology (Kuet) have met with Shabbir Ahmed, assistant personal secretary to the chief adviser, to present their six-point demands, including the removal of the vice-chancellor and ensuring politics-free campus.
After the meeting at around 3pm today (23 February), they held a press briefing at the Central Shaheed Minar in Dhaka.
The students said the chief adviser's personal assistant secretary met them on his behalf and he was handed over a six-point demand with the signatures of students of 16 departments of Kuet.
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If the students do not get any response from the state, they will launch tougher programmes, they warned.
Earlier in the day, around 80 students from Kuet left for Dhaka to submit a memorandum to Chief Adviser Muhammad Yunus, demanding the removal of Vice-Chancellor Prof Mohammad Masud and Pro-Vice-Chancellor Prof Shariful Islam, along with the fulfilment of their six-point demands.
Departing the campus at 8am on two rented buses, the students voiced concerns over their safety, stating that they no longer felt secure on campus.
They said they would return home promptly after submitting the memorandum to the chief adviser in Dhaka.
"We will not return until security is ensured on campus. Our activities will continue online," one of the protesting students said during a press briefing earlier.
In response to a question, the students claimed that some teachers, including the vice-chancellor, are trying to spread misinformation that their demands have been met.
This is entirely false, they said.
The students also said the attackers are clearly identified, yet unidentified individuals have been named in the case instead.
They also demanded punishment for teachers, officers, and employees who enable student politics. They further demanded that the entire campus be brought under CCTV surveillance for security reasons.
During the departure, students were seen holding placards with slogans such as "Where was the administration when blood was shed?", "Why are the attackers still free?", "We demand a safe campus", "We don't want a VC who cannot ensure security", and "Remove Masud, Save Kuet".
Their eyes were covered with red cloth as a form of protest.
Earlier, the students had sent a letter to the chief adviser, where they outlined the sequence of events leading to their demands.
The letter stated that on 11 August 2024, Kuet's 93rd (emergency) syndicate meeting decided to ban all political activities on campus.
However, despite this decision, Chhatra Dal attempted to establish its political presence, students said.
In response, on 18 February, Kuet students organised a peaceful protest against Chhatra Dal's membership form distribution.
During this protest, Chhatra Dal activists suddenly intervened, pushing students and issuing threats, escalating tensions between Kuet students and Chhatra Dal members. Following this, Chhatra Dal, along with local BNP activists, attacked students, leaving over 100 reportedly injured. The attack continued for four hours, during which the university administration failed to provide security.
As a result, the students issued a six-point demand, including the resignation of the vice-chancellor and pro-vice-chancellor.
They accuse the VC of attempting to allow political interference in Kuet's politically neutral campus and failing to provide security during the violent attack by Chhatra Dal activists.
Despite over 150 students reportedly being injured, they claim he refused to take responsibility and ignored clear evidence identifying Kuet Chhatra Dal members and local BNP affiliates involved in the attack.
Additionally, they alleged that he denied the reality of the attack despite strong proof and failed to fully implement the six-point demands even after being given sufficient time.
