DU Correspondent :
Teachers from Dhaka University (DU), along with colleagues from various universities across the country, staged a demonstration on the DU campus, demanding justice for those killed during the quota reform movement and the withdrawal of law enforcement from university campuses.
Under the banner of ‘Teachers against Repression’, the educators also protested the harassment of teachers and students nationwide, calling for the immediate reopening of classes and dormitories on campuses.
The protest took place in front of Aporajeyo Bangla at DU, where a significant number of students from various educational institutions, including Dhaka University, joined them.
The teachers emphasised that the government must release detained students unconditionally and halt arrests made under the guise of block raids.
Addressing the demonstration, Prof Md Nazrul Islam, known as Asif Nazrul from the Law Department, stated that the government must resign if it fails to prosecute those responsible for the killings associated with the quota reform movement.
He added, “This government will not prosecute this murder because the government itself is a murderer. Bloody forces and killing organisations have been unleashed from the highest levels of government. Now attempts are being made to take the trial of murder in another direction.”
Prof Asif Nazrul further admonished the government, stating that the teachers would not remain passive while students are left insecure. He said, “Bangladesh has been shot in the chest.
Youth is the heart of Bangladesh; if this heart is hurt, we will not quietly accept it.”
“I saw with my own eyes people being shot by police in uniform. I saw the video of how Abu Saeed was shot. Firearms were in the hands of Jubo League and Chhatra League.
But the government is claiming that our students died at the hands of terrorists,” Asif Nazrul added.
The teachers announced a protest programme to take place today in front of the National Press Club, inviting university teachers, engineers, doctors, and professionals from various fields to participate.
Prof Dr Mohammad Mainul Islam from the Population Sciences Department commented on the continuous violation of human rights, stating, “Today the police grabbed my student’s face and did not allow him to speak. Is this the Bangladesh we want to see?”
Prof Dr Chowdhury Saima Ferdous from the International Business Studies Department drew a historical parallel, saying, “In 1971, the Pakistan forces used to go door to door asking whether there was a freedom fighter present. Now, it is asked whether there are students present.”
“You kill one and ten will stand up. Kill ten people and thousands will stand up. Students are our children; you have no right to shoot them,” Prof Saima added.
After concluding the programme, the teachers brought out a procession that ended at the TSC, where they held a brief rally. Later, they marched silently towards the Central Shaheed Minar and observed a minute’s silence to honour those killed during the quota reform movement.
Prof Kamrul Hasan Mamun from the Physics Department, Prof Dr M Jahangir Alam Chowdhury from the Finance Department, Prof Samina Lutfa from the Sociology Department, Nasir Uddin Ahmed from Jagannath University, and others expressed their agitation at the rally.
Earlier in the day, teachers and students from the Economics Department and the Public Administration Department staged separate protests at the same location, condemning the attack on Shehrin Amin Bhuiyan, a faculty member of the Public Administration Department at Dhaka University.