Lecture halls are deserted and laboratories lie silent, yet Chittagong University of Engineering and Technology (Cuet) is anything but quiet.
Entering its second week, the campus-wide shutdown demanding the reinstatement of former Vice-Chancellor Professor Abu Sadat Muhammad Sayem has evolved into a uniquely creative movement, with students deploying art, cricket, and cinema to amplify their grievances.
Since the “complete shutdown” was declared on 22 September, formal academic life has ground to a halt.
In place of lectures and laboratory assessments, the student body has organised a sequence of unconventional demonstrations.
On Monday morning, students staged a symbolic “56-ball short-pitch cricket tournament” directly at the university’s main gate, a direct reference to the 56-day duration of Professor Sayem’s tenure.
By afternoon, the gates became the backdrop for an artistic installation titled “White Sari Public Testimony”.
Armed with brushes, markers, and paint, students documented key milestones from Professor Sayem’s brief term across a expanse of white fabric, culminating in a detailed portrait of the ousted administrator.
“Graffiti is a vital artistic language for protesting against perceived injustice,” explained Wasim Rubaiyat Rubi, an architecture student from the 2023-24 academic year.
“Having already voiced our frustration through rallies and red cards, this memorial serves to highlight precisely why Professor Sayem earned our trust, and why we demand his immediate reinstatement.”
Across the grounds, the protest has taken on a multi-faceted rhythm.
Groups of students gathered to play card games, acoustic guitar sessions echoed near administrative blocks, and others gathered around laptops for informal e-sports matches.
As dusk fell, demonstrators screened the film Bonolota Express at the Shaheed Minar, ahead of a late-night rally called to condemn alleged intimidation aimed at protesting students and faculty.
The movement gained critical weight on Monday as the Cuet Teachers’ Association initiated a work abstention from 11.00am.
Gathering outside the Vice-Chancellor’s Office, faculty members were joined by university officers and administrative staff, effectively paralysing official operations.
Speaking to reporters, Teachers’ Association President Professor Mohammad Ahsan Ullah confirmed that official channels remain closed.
“Neither the government, the University Grants Commission, nor the Ministry of Education has invited us for dialogue,” he said, adding that the association has held no talks with the interim leadership.
Addressing worries regarding academic delays, Professor Ahsan Ullah reassured that faculty would help students recover lost time once the impasse ends.
“We have successfully navigated similar crises in the past, such as running concurrent academic years in the late nineties. Whilst the 2021-22 cohort may now graduate in early next year rather than this winter, faculty members are fully prepared to run extra classes to protect our students’ academic progression,” he said.
For the students, these expressive demonstrations are far more than mere distraction; they represent a sustained effort to maintain momentum while keeping the campus unified until their administrative demands are addressed.
