Leaders and activists of Bangladesh Chhatra League (BCL) have allegedly kicked a general student out of his dormitory room in the dead of night at Rajshahi University. They also beat him up and abused him.
The incident took place at Room 248 of Nawab Abdul Latif Hall around 2:00 am on Friday.
The victim – Munna Islam, a chemistry department student of the 2019-20 session -- is a residential student of the hall and officially attached to the room.
In a Facebook post Friday morning, Munna said he is a residential student of the room and has been staying there for the last five months. Some followers of Shamim Hossain, BCL’s hall unit secretary, went to the room and asked him to leave around 2:00 am.
When he did not comply with the order and showed his residential card, the BCL activists turned aggressive and threw his beddings out of the room.
In a conversation with Prothom Alo, Munna said he got allotment of the room through due process. As the BCL men were driving him out of the room, he contacted the hall provost over phone, but he asked Munna to wait until morning.
He will lodge a complaint with the university administration regarding the issue, he added.
Prothom Alo has obtained some audio clips where the BCL men were heard to force Munna to leave the hall.
Md Shamim Hossain, secretary of BCL’s Nawab Abdul Latif Hall, ruled out the allegation, saying that they did not drive him out of the hall and the allegation of assault is baseless.
Munna was asked to share his seat with another residential student, who also got allotment from the provost on humanitarian grounds, Shamim explained.
However, he admitted that his followers went there, but did not throw beddings of Munna out of the room.
Contacted, the hall provost, AHM Mahbubur Rahman, told Prothom Alo that he was reported the issue in the night.
“Action will be taken against the concerned individuals as per the university law if the allegation is substantiated. They will also be expelled from the hall,” he said, adding that Munna is a student of the room and he will continue staying there.
Earlier on 14 June, another student – Sajib Kumar – went through a similar experience at the hall. Followers of Shamim Hossain threw out beddings of Sajib in the same fashion.
Incidents of such harassment, assault and irregularities by the ruling party student front have increased in the recent days, but the authorities are yet to take any step against them.
Teachers, students, and guardians held a human chain under the same banner at the campus on 13 June protesting the incidents, but it has had no effect on the university administration.
The provost council held a meeting on the heels of the protest programme, but it too ended without any action against the accused.