RU professor on hunger strike again to protest BCL assault

Farid Uddin Khan, an economics department professor at Rajshahi University, has started a hunger strike on the campus protesting against the assaults carried out by the Bangladesh Chhatra League (BCL) in different educational institutions across the country.

He sat on the Zoha Chattar of Rajshahi University campus around 10:0am on Thursday and declared to stay there until 5:00 pm.

Professor Farid Uddin Khan has long been vocal against the assaults, seat business, and other irregularities by the ruling party’s student front.

Earlier, he held a hunger strike at the same place on 26 June last year, in protest against the BCL assaults.

This time, he announced the strike programme through his personal Facebook handle on the previous night and called upon others to extend their support by joining the strike at Zoha Chattar.

He appeared on the spot on Thursday morning and took position there with a placard emblazoned with, “Hunger strike protesting assaults on general students.”

Talking to Prothom Alo, Professor Farid Uddin Khan said the guardians who sent their children to study here have expressed utmost disappointment over the current situation. He, as a conscious citizen, feels that these incidents should be protested.

“Such incidents are grossly violation of human rights. Students are being tortured and driven out of their dormitory rooms. They are being assaulted with different tags,” he continued.

RUCSU Andolan Mancha convener Abdul Majeed sat in solidarity with the strike.

He said a teacher sat against the ongoing anarchy in the residential halls of the educational institutions. They express solidarity with the protest and believe that such incidents should be stopped.