Applied Human Science College students block Nilkhet road demanding principal’s resignation

Students of Government College of Applied Human Science (formerly Home Economics College) in the capital continued their protests for a second consecutive day, demanding the resignation of Principal Professor Meherun Nessa and justice over an alleged police attack on students, among other demands.

The students began protesting after blocking both sides of the road in front of the college in Nilkhet shortly after 10:30 am today, Friday. Traffic came to a standstill as a result.

The protesting students said they would continue their movement, until their demands were met. However, none of them agreed to speak on record, giving their names and identities.

Officer-in-charge (OC) of Lalbagh Police Station Mohammad Jamil Hossain told Prothom Alo this morning that more than 50 students had blocked the road in front of the college and were staging protests. They were chanting various slogans, including calls for the principal’s resignation. However, no untoward incident has occurred there, he said.

The protesters’ demands include the resignation of Principal Professor Meherun Nessa, the issuance of show-cause notices to police officers who allegedly beat students with batons inside the campus, the indefinite suspension of all campus activities until the principal submits a written resignation, and a declaration that teachers and employees who tried to justify the attack are unwelcome on campus.

At around 10:30 am yesterday, Thursday, students began a sit-in in front of the principal’s office. At one point, they confined her inside the office. Police arrived at around 11:30 pm and rescued her. The protesters alleged that police baton-charged students at the time. Several students were injured in the incident.

In protest, students also staged demonstrations on the road in front of the college last night. Today, they have taken to the streets again for the second day.

According to protesting students and college administration sources, before the Puja holidays, a farewell programme was organised at the college auditorium for final-year postgraduate students from five departments across three residential halls.

Initially, the programme was scheduled to end by 10:00 pm. At the students’ request, the deadline was later extended to midnight. However, the programme did not end until 5:00 am.

As the auditorium was used beyond the permitted time, Principal Meherun Nessa cancelled the residential hall seats of two students who had coordinated the programme.

When the students later went to apologise, they were told that their seats would be reinstated on condition that they paid a fine of Tk 12,600 to cover the auditorium’s air-conditioning and electricity costs for one night. The students launched their protest in response.

While she was confined inside her office yesterday evening, Principal Meherun Nessa told journalists, “What the students are saying is totally the opposite of what happened. I had given them permission to hold a programme until midnight. They continued until 5:00 am. As a result, I got a little angry and cancelled the hall seats of two of them.”

“Later, they apologised to me. I showed some leniency and told them that, since they had not maintained any discipline, they would have to face disciplinary action to ensure order in the future. They wasted electricity for a long time, and I will collect that bill from them. I issued the notice imposing the fine, and that is my offence,” she added.

The principal also said, “They are asking me to sign a resignation letter on a blank sheet of paper. Why should I resign to them?”