Staff Reporter :
The Senate members of Dhaka University (DU) have proposed in a recent meeting to cancel the PhD degree of former Inspector General of Police (IGP) Benazir Ahmed.
The proposal was put forward by educationist Ranjit Kumar Saha, Professor Dr. M Wahiduzzaman, former Vice-Chancellor of Noakhali Science and Technology University, and Professor ABM Obaidul Islam.
During the meeting on Wednesday, June 26, the Senate members contended that Benazir Ahmed was granted a PhD degree from the university despite not meeting the necessary admission requirements.
Benazir, who obtained his doctorate degree in 2019, began using the title ‘Dr.’ before his name. However, a recently published media report revealed that he was not eligible for the PhD programme, but the admission requirements were allegedly relaxed for him.
Benazir received a Doctor of Business Administration (DBA) degree from the Faculty of Business Studies. The standard admission criteria for this programme include a bachelor’s degree with at least 50 percent marks in each public examination, which Benazir reportedly did not possess, according to the report.
Adding to the controversy, Benazir and his family members left the country in May amidst allegations of amassing significant illegal wealth. In light of these allegations, the Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) issued a legal notice, summoning him to appear on June 6. However, Benazir did not comply.
ACC Chairman Moinuddin Abdullah stated that Benazir sent a letter through a representative requesting more time. Consequently, he was summoned again to appear before the ACC on June 23, but he failed to show up once more.
The call to revoke Benazir Ahmed’s PhD degree comes as the university and relevant authorities continue to grapple with the implications of these allegations and their impact on institutional integrity.