Eighteen leaders and activists of the banned Chhatra League have been expelled from the residential halls of Chittagong University of Engineering and Technology (Cuet).
Additionally, three others have been issued show-cause notices.
The decision was announced on Thursday, through separate notices signed by the director of the Student Welfare Department and member secretary of Cuet's Student Discipline Committee.
According to university authorities, the action was taken in response to allegations of involvement in activities against the interests of general students and the public, particularly during and after the recent anti-discrimination student movement.
Earlier on the morning of February 6, Cuet students staged a protest and surrounded the vice-chancellor’s residence, demanding reforms in university administration and the removal of Chhatra League leader and Civil Engineering Department lecturer Safkat Ar Rumman.
Following this, the decision to expel the students was made in a meeting.
Among the 18 expelled individuals, eight were former vice-presidents of the Cuet unit Chhatra League, seven were joint general secretaries, and six were organizational secretaries.
The three students who received show-cause notices are Rakib Uddin Chowdhury, a student of the Civil Engineering department and a joint general secretary of Chhatra League; Bijoy Hossain, a student of the Mechatronics and Industrial Engineering department and the general secretary of Chhatra League; and Chinmoy Kumar Debnath, a student of the Civil Engineering department and a vice-president of Chhatra League.
Regarding the decision, Cuet's Deputy Director of the Student Welfare Department Saiful Islam, said: "Based on complaints from students and subsequent interviews with complainants, the Student Discipline Committee found them guilty and imposed this minimal punishment."
Mahafuzur Rahman Mohabbat, coordinator of the Cuet branch of the Anti-Discrimination Student Movement, said: "Although actions were taken against Chhatra League in Buet, Kuet, and other universities, Cuet administration had so far remained silent.”
He added: “That’s why we staged a protest on Thursday, demanding the expulsion of Chhatra League leaders and the trial of former Chhatra League leader and Civil Engineering lecturer Safkat Ar Rumman, who was accused of drinking alcohol.”
He further added: “The administration has now taken action in response to student demands."
