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Published : 17 May 2025, 08:54 PM
Students of Dhaka’s seven government colleges have demanded the formation of an interim administration by Sunday to oversee the transition of their institutions into a university.
At a press conference held outside Eden Mohila College on Saturday afternoon, the students said they also want an official ordinance within Jun 16 to transform the colleges into a “full-fledged” university.
Failing that, they warned of surrounding the education, law and relevant ministries.
Tanzimul Abid of Dhaka College and Jafrin Akhter of Begum Badrunnesa Government Girls’ College read out the joint written statement on behalf of the student movement advocating the university transformation.
Jafrin said the University Grants Commission (UGC) had proposed an interim authority on Feb 25 to manage academic and administrative affairs during the handover phase following the end of the colleges' affiliation with Dhaka University.
The approval of that proposal, however, has been pending for over two and a half months, she added.
“We have heard it is stuck, awaiting approval from the public administration ministry,” Jafrin said.
She added that the UGC has already proposed a name for the new institution — Dhaka Central University — with a logo and model ready for rollout.
Jafrin accused the authorities of a “deliberate” delay in implementing the plan.
“A committee was formed to outline the transition process and was given four months. Its term ended on the 30th of April, yet our crisis remains unresolved,” she said.
She alleged that from the beginning, there has been a tendency to undermine the status of the seven colleges.
“It feels like we are being deliberately neglected at every step,” Jafrin said.
According to her, the notification for an interim administration was supposed to follow shortly after the university’s name was finalised. “But for some unseen reason, it’s still pending.”
Because the ordinance and interim body have not yet been issued, students remain dependent on Dhaka University for academic affairs, exams and all administrative tasks, said the Badrunnesa College student.
“We believe this is obstructing the goal of establishing an autonomous university,” she added.
Tanzimul outlined five specific demands:
>> A gazette notification forming the interim administration must be issued by Sunday, May 18
>> Once the appointment of the interim administrator is finalised, an academic calendar must be published to address the session backlog and other academic issues. At the same time, clear steps must be taken to resolve disputed or “ghost” results and to stop the collection of excessive fees in specific areas such as form fill-ups, registration, and tuition.
>> The admission test for the 2024–25 academic year must be scheduled within two working days of forming the interim administration.
>> The outline, logo, and monogram of Dhaka Central University must be released within the next five working days.
>> Within Jun 16, the ordinance for the new university must be issued, and an allocation must be made for it in the upcoming 2025–26 fiscal budget.
“If the gazette for the interim administration is not issued within the 18th of May, we will return to the streets the next day,” Tanzimul warned.
He said further programmes would be announced through press releases, based on the evolving situation. “If we are forced to return to the streets, we’ll surround the relevant ministries to avoid public suffering.”
Tanzimul also referred to a recent assurance from Planning Advisor Wahiduddin Mahmud, who said the interim authority would be announced within the current week.
According to him, Wahiduddin told the students on Friday night that the public administration ministry has completed procedures for the proposed interim authority, and the file has been sent to the Chief Advisor Office (CAO).
“We want to place our trust in the planning advisor’s assurance,” said Tanzimul.
