Rajshahi University (RU) authorities on Tuesday suspended Hafizur Rahman, a teacher of the Islamic Studies department, for five years for sending offensive text messages and forcing female students to remove their hijab.
The decision was taken during a meeting of the Academic Committee of the university.
Md Ashraf Uz Zaman, the chairperson of the Islamic Studies department, briefed the media following the meeting.
He said: "The meeting of the Academic Committee was held based on the complaints by students. After scrutinizing the complaints, Associate Professor Hafizur Rahman was suspended from academic activities for five years. As the teacher admitted to the allegations and the outcome of the meeting, no inquiry committee was formed. As a result, the suspension will be effective On Tuesday.”
On Monday afternoon, Islamic Studies students formed a human chain on the campus, demanding exemplary punishment of Hafizur Rahman for forcing the female students to remove their hijab and uncover their faces. More than 100 students joined the program in front of the university's central library at 3pm to press home their demands.
The students alleged that Assistant Professor Hafizur Rahman often made offensive remarks about the students’ dresses and harassed them. He also sent out text messages to female students on Messenger.
Considering the seriousness of the allegations, the authorities sat in a meeting at 11am yesterday and took a prompt decision.
Meanwhile, the university students declared Hafizur Rahman persona non grata on the campus. They formed a human chain under the banner of the Student Rights Association. They also demanded that the teacher be suspended from all academic activities, along with other exemplary punishments.
