Chaos has been prevailing at Jashore University of Science and Technology. The general students get injured in clashes between two groups of Chhatra League while teachers strike against the corruption of teachers and officials and against Chhatra League’s oppression.
Jobseekers coming to attend an exam for the post of lift operator were locked up and harassed by Chhatra League leaders and activists there.
Prothom Alo reported that total 38 candidates were called to attend the exam for 12 posts of lift operator at the campus on Thursday. Their practical exam continued from 10:00am to 3:30pm.
In the meantime, the university authorities heard news that 11 of those candidates have been locked up in the students’ hostel on the campus. Later they were released when the police arrived on the campus in the afternoon. Afterwards, candidates who were locked up attended the exam from the afternoon till night.
One of the victims said, “I came from Kushtia to attend the exam but when I arrived at the main entrance of the campus around 10:00am, some students took away my admit card and locked me up in room no. 304 of the student’s hostel.”
Vice-chancellor of the university Anwar Hossain said Chhatra League leaders and activists reside in the rooms where the candidates were locked.
When the police was called on campus, the candidates were released in the afternoon. Only 26 out of the 38 candidates could attend the exam while the other 12 couldn’t, he added.
To cover up their crimes, accused Chhatra League leaders and activists have taken out the hard disk of the CCTV camera. The Chhatra League leaders and activists at the university aren’t supposed to have any link with the lift operator job there. It’s completely an administrative responsibility.
Where did they get the audacity to lock up the jobseekers? Though Chhatra League had been carrying out criminal activities on the campus for quite a long time, the university authorities didn’t take any action against them.
The authorities merely dispensed of their duties by forming an inquiry committee on the decision of filing a case. Though, one of the victims filed a case in connection to Thursday’s incident, nobody has been arrested till this editorial was being written.
Who will take the responsibility for this series of mishaps occurring one after the other at Jashore University of Science and Technology? In the clashes between two groups of Chhatra League on campus, the central leaders of Chhatra League had cancelled the committee there.
But, the committee was reinstated within only a few days by cancelling their cancellation order. In that case, not even the central Chhatra League can evade the responsibility for this mishap on the campus.
It is the responsibility of the university authorities to ensure a proper environment for education on the campus. But, there are questions regarding how far did they have done so.
When the vice-chancellor himself said that the rooms where the jobseekers were kept locked away were of Chhatra League leaders and activists, the president of the university unit of Chhatra League said that he’s not involved with this incident. It was his opposition who committed this crime and now blaming it onto him, he said.
If Jashore University of Science and Technology is to remain clear of the slander of criminal activities and oppression, let those who abducted and locked the jobseekers be brought to justice without any delay.
On one hand the government will preach that the law is equal for everyone, but everything will be excused when it comes to Chhatra League- why this self-contradiction? No matter which group of the Chhatra League commits a crime, they must be brought to justice.