Students of 7 Dhaka colleges stage sit-in before Shikkha Bhaban demanding Dhaka Central University ordinance
Demonstrating students say they will not leave the street until the ordinance is issued.
Hundreds of students from seven government colleges in Dhaka, previously affiliated with Dhaka University, held a sit-in today (13 October) in front of Shikkha Bhaban, demanding the issuance of an ordinance for the proposed Dhaka Central University, which would merge the seven colleges.
They said they will not leave the street until the ordinance is issued.
Police set up barricades and closed the road leading to the Secretariat due to the demonstration, halting vehicular movement in the area.
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Meanwhile, higher-secondary-level students of Dhaka College and Begum Badrunnessa Govt Girls College staged a separate sit-in and march at the Central Shaheed Minar today, demanding the continuation of the higher secondary section and preservation of their colleges' individual identities.
Around noon, students from the two colleges gathered separately at the Shaheed Minar, where they voiced objections to the draft ordinance of the proposed Dhaka Central University.
Students of these seven colleges had announced their program in a message to the media on 10 October. According to the plan, they were to march to Shikkha Bhaban and stage a sit-in today.
At the time, they demanded the long-awaited ordinance be issued immediately, saying the movement would intensify otherwise.
The seven colleges are Dhaka College, Eden Mohila College, Begum Badrunnesa Government Girls College, Government Titumir College, Kabi Nazrul Government College, Government Shaheed Suhrawardy College, and Government Bangla College.
They collectively have about 200,000 students and more than 1,000 teachers, admitting around 21,500 students each session.
These colleges were affiliated with Dhaka University on 17 February 2017, but the affiliation ended in January this year following weeks of student protests. The students have long demanded the establishment of a separate university.
An interim government committee was formed in December last year. It spent over three months conducting feasibility studies, visiting campuses, drafting a framework for separation, and consulting teachers and students.
On 18 February, the UGC invited suggestions for the name of the proposed university, and in March the name was finalised as Dhaka Central University.
