From forcing deans to resign and confronting university authorities to repeated allegations of violence, intimidation and administrative interference, Rucsu General Secretary Salahuddin Ammar has remained at the centre of one controversy after another.
A fresh attempted murder case has now raised broader questions over whether repeated institutional inaction emboldened one of the country’s most controversial student leaders.
For nearly a year, Rajshahi University has witnessed a steady stream of controversies surrounding Rajshahi University Central Students’ Union (Rucsu) General Secretary Salahuddin Ammar.
Each incident sparked criticism, protests or investigation committees. Yet none resulted in visible disciplinary action.
That pattern has now come under renewed scrutiny after a court directed the Police Bureau of Investigation (PBI) to investigate an attempted murder case against Ammar, Rucsu Assistant General Secretary SM Salman Sabbir and seven other student leaders over the alleged assault on student Mahmudul Hasan inside the university’s central library.
The case also names 17 to 18 unidentified people as accused.
The criminal case is the most serious legal challenge Ammar has faced since emerging as one of the most influential student leaders on campus.
But for many teachers and students, it is only the latest chapter in a series of incidents that they say gradually transformed him from an elected student representative into a figure capable of influencing administrative decisions and creating a climate of fear across the university.
According to the case filed by Mahmudul’s father, the victim was repeatedly assaulted with iron rods and bamboo sticks, dragged from an ambulance while being taken for treatment and beaten again.
The complaint further alleges that when the family first approached Motihar Police Station, police declined to accept the case, prompting them to seek relief through the court, which later referred the matter to the PBI for investigation.
Long before the latest case, Ammar had repeatedly drawn headlines.
During protests over the reinstatement of the “dependent quota” before the Rucsu election, he led demonstrations in which the then vice-chancellor’s vehicle was surrounded and university officials were confined inside an administrative building for hours.
The incident triggered widespread criticism, although Ammar denied physically assaulting any teacher.
After becoming Rucsu general secretary, allegations against him shifted from street protests to university administration.
Teachers accused him of interfering in administrative affairs, threatening faculty members and publicly pressuring deans to resign.
During one protest, resignation letters were displayed before journalists while administrative offices, including those of the vice-chancellor, registrar and proctor, were locked.
The university later relieved several deans of their duties following the standoff.
His activities also extended beyond campus administration.
A fundraising campaign seeking Tk76 lakh for a July anniversary concert drew criticism over transparency.
An eight-hour railway blockade over an unrelated student incident disrupted train services across the western region and, according to railway authorities, caused losses of around Tk35 lakh.
Controversial social media comments and political disputes further fuelled public debate.
Critics also repeatedly linked Ammar to earlier incidents of violence, including allegations over the death of a former Chhatra League leader in 2024.
Those allegations have been publicly denied by Ammar, and no conviction has been reported.
Despite the succession of controversies, university authorities acknowledge that while several investigation committees were formed over different incidents, their findings never resulted in publicly known disciplinary measures.
Teachers and student organisations argue that this lack of visible accountability allowed tensions to escalate over time.
The latest library assault has intensified those concerns.
The Democratic Student Alliance described the incident as “mob violence” and demanded a fair investigation.
Leaders of the Student Rights Council, Samajtantrik Chhatra Front and Chhatra Dal also called for those responsible to be punished, warning that repeated incidents were undermining the university’s academic environment and damaging its reputation nationwide.
Ammar has rejected the allegations, saying all of his actions were intended to protect students’ interests.
He claimed the library violence was a reaction to an attack on the Rucsu building by Chhatra League activists.
Rajshahi University Chhatra Shibir also denied responsibility for his actions, saying he is not a member of the organisation.
University authorities say the latest incident, along with earlier allegations, is now under investigation and that action will be taken once inquiry reports are submitted.
For many on campus, however, the central question is no longer about a single incident, but how repeated controversies were allowed to accumulate until they culminated in a criminal investigation.