The High Court has ordered an "anti-ragging squad" to be formed at educational institutions across Bangladesh.
The bench of Justice M Enayetur Rahim and Justice Mostafizur Rahman gave the order on Sunday after hearing a writ.
The court also ordered the formulation of a committee to monitor the squad, and issued a rule asking why the respondent’s laxity in protecting the students from ragging should not be declared illegal.
On Oct 9, 2019, Supreme Court lawyer Ishrat Jahan served the University Grants Commission (UGC) chairman and the home and education secretaries with legal notice asking them to take steps against ragging in the educational institutions.
The notice asked the respondents to form within seven-days an "anti-ragging squad" and anti-ragging committee to aid the students.
However, since they did not respond to the notice a writ was filed with the High Court on January 8.
Recent university action against ragging
Bangladesh University of Engineering and Technology (Buet) authorities recently punished 14 students on different terms for their involvement in ragging, in the aftermath of the murder of Abrar Fahad and the subsequent protests.
Eight of these students were expelled from academic activities on different terms and expelled from Titumir Hall for life.
The ragging took place in different instances in the past at the university’s Titumir Hall.
A student paints grafitti on a wall of the Dhaka University campus on Saturday, October 12, 2019 | Syed Zakir Hossain/Dhaka TribuneBuet Residence and Discipline Board took the decision after a report was submitted by a committee formed to investigate the recent ragging at the dormitory.
The six other students were expelled from the hall on different terms over the same charges.
Another student was also warned by the board so that such incidents do not repeat in future.
On November 28, nine other students were suspended from Suhrawardy and Ahsan Ullah halls on allegations of ragging.
The board also suspended 21 students from their respective dormitories for different terms and alerted them to not repeat such act in future.