Student politics banned in 33 institutions of higher education

In face of student demands, student politics has been banned in at least 19 public universities, 4 government colleges and 10 government medical colleges. Student politics was prohibited in these institutions after the fall of the Awami League government on 5 August following the student-people's mass uprising. Also, alongside student politics, a ban has been placed on politics of teachers, officials and employees of 27 of these institutions.

During the rule of Awami League, the general students had reached the limit of the endurance with the repression and other misdeeds of the party's affiliated student organisation Chhatra League. A large number of the students raised the demand for a ban on student politics in feat that a similar situation would recur if student politics persisted.

Till Thursday, the universities where politics have been banned include Dhaka University, Jagannath University, Cumilla University, Rajshahi University of Engineering and Technology, Haji Mohammad Danesh University of Science and Technology, Begum Rokeya University, Khulna University of Engineering and Technology, Bangladesh Textile University, Noakhali University of Engineering and Technology, Chattogram University of Engineering and Technology, Pabna University of Engineering and Technology, Tangail Maulana Bhasani University of Engineering and Technology, Kishoreganj's Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman University, Dhaka University of Engineering and Technology (DUET), Bangladesh Agricultural University, Sher-e-Bangla Agricultural University, Jatiya Kabi Kazi Nazrul Islam University, Sylhet Agricultural University, and Barishal University. Of these, teacher-official-employee politics has also been banned alongside student politics in DUET and Jatiya Kabi Kazi Nazrul Islam University.

The medical colleges where politics have been banned include Dhaka Medical College, Sir Salimullah Medical College, Chittagong Medical College, Shaheed Ziaur Rahman Medical College, Sher-e-Bangla Medical College, Kushtia Medical College, Sylhet Osmani Medical College, Mymensingh Medical College, Rangpur Medical College and Rangamati Medical College. Other than in Dhaka Medical College, teacher-official-employee politics has also been banned alongside student politics in all the rest. Teacher-official-employee politics has been banned in Santahar College, alongside the prohibition on student politics there.

Demands have also been raised to ban student politics in Jahangirnagar University and Chittagong University and a number of other educational institutions. The demand had been particularly strong in Dhaka University. At a meeting of the syndicate on Thursday night, discussion was held on halting all political activities of the students, teachers, officials and employees on Dhaka University campus till further notice.

Almost all of the frontline coordinators of the quota reforms platform, Students against Discrimination, were leaders of the student group Gonotantrik Chhatra Shakti. At one point of the movement, one of the main coordinators of Students against Discrimination, Abdul Kader, announced a nine-point demand, the seventh demand of which was that students politics affiliated to political parties must be banned and the student unions must be activated.

Speaking to Prothom Alo, one of the main coordinators of the Students against Discrimination movement, Abu Baker Majumdar, said, "We do not want student politics affiliated with political parties on campus. We want constructive politics based on the students union."

In the meantime, central president of the left-leaning student organisation Chhatra Union, Ragib Nayeem, said there certain is need for a healthy trend of politics in educational institutions to make the students politically conscious. He told Prothom Alo, there can be discussions against forceful control and crime in the name of student politics. But to ban all types of student politics is an attempt at depoliticization.

A platform under the name of University Reform Initiative (URI) held a press briefing on 7 September at the Dhaka University Journalist Association office. Two students presented their written statements there. One of them was Rafia Rehnuma Ridhi, student of the university's Bangladesh-Kuwait Maitri Hall. Rafia is a coordinator of the Student against Discrimination movement.

The eight-point proposal placed by the URI includes that all sorts of political party programmes (meetings, rallies, processions, meetings, conferences, showdowns, marches, etc) must be banned in all residential and academic spaces of Dhaka University; no one will be able to use any political identity or affiliation to spread influence or try to gain benefit or special consideration in these aforementioned places; if any students is involved in such activities, the university administration will take punitive action and a law in this regard will be passed by the syndicate; in these places of any one has belief in certain political ideology or expresses their own views, without trying to stage a political programme, they will not be subject to any punitive action.

In the meantime, on Tuesday afternoon at a press briefing held at the Dhaka University Journalist Association office, Dhaka University Research Society (DURS) published the results of a survey on 'Opinion of students on party-affiliated student politics at Dhaka University'. The survey was carried out from 3 September to 11 September covering 2,237 students of 78 departments and 10 institutes. Students of the academic years from 2017-18 to 2023-24 took part in the survey.

According to the survey results, 83.80 per cent of the students wanted a complete can on party-affiliated student politics. And 16 per cent of the students hoped for party-affiliated politics in a reformed manner on campus. Only 0.20 per cent wanted student politics to remain as it is, unchanged, on campus. A total of 88 per cent of the students said that party-affiliated student politics had "no importance" on campus.

Based on the results of the survey, DURS presented four recommendations at the press conference. These were, to ban party-affiliated student politics, reviving and reforming DUCSU, forming an education and research development committee and ensuring an environment conducive to education and research.