The face-off between two groups of teachers and subsequent work abstention have put the academic calendar at Sylhet's Shahjalal University of Science and Technology (SUST) in jeopardy, causing students to suffer.
One group – which calls itself the Forum of Teachers Inspired by the Spirit of Liberation War – has continued its agitation on the campus demanding the resignation of Vice-Chancellor Prof Md Aminul Haque Bhuyan for alleged irregularities.
The other, pro-VC, group with a somewhat similar name – the Forum of Teachers United in the Spirit of Great Liberation War and Free Thinking – has called a procession and press conference on the campus today.
Yesterday, the anti-VC group staged its pre-scheduled agitation programme from 9am to 5pm on the SUST campus in Sylhet. They also observed work abstention as per a previous announcement.
They brought out a procession from in front of the teachers’ canteen and continued on to the vice-chancellor building.
In a brief rally that followed, Prof Syed Shamsul Alam, convener of the anti-VC group, said their agitation would continue until the VC resigned.
However, the group postponed its agitation programmes for today because of the death of a student of the university.
“We have only one demand. Remove the VC and appoint someone capable and meritorious to the post. Otherwise, our movement will continue,” Prof Shamsul said.
He also said all the classes and examinations were kept out of the purview of their work abstention, but none of the protesters took any classes yesterday.
Around 50 teachers of this forum including Prof Yasmeen Haque and Prof Anwarul Islam were present at the rally.
Meanwhile, Prof Md Akterul Islam, convener of the pro-VC teachers’ group, told the Dhaka Tribune that they would clarify their stance in a press conference today.
Officials said that the semester final examinations have already started but because of the teachers’ agitation programmes, there are uncertainties over whether they would be able to finish all the scheduled classes.
Seeking anonymity, a student said: “Once there was no session jam in our university. But because of the teachers’ movement, we are not having the scheduled classes. As a result, we are already facing a year of session jam.
“We urge our teachers to give up dirty politics and salvage us and our futures,” he said.
The anti-VC movement has been going at SUST intermittently since April this year. In June, 37 teachers, including writer and columnist Prof Muhammed Zafar Iqbal, simultaneously resigned from their administrative duties.
Things became particularly heated on August 24 when Chhatra League men physically assaulted the anti-VC protesters on the campus.