Endless questions surrounding student safety at the University of Dhaka have reached boiling point, as frequent incidents of theft, mugging, and sexual harassment leave undergraduates feeling profoundly unprotected.
Debate over campus security was reignited following the fatal shooting of student leader Shahriar Alam Samya in 2025. However, university authorities have so far failed to implement effective measures to secure the grounds.
The situation has deteriorated further in recent weeks. On the night of 15 September, three consecutive crude bomb explosions shook the campus area. Weeks earlier, on 19 August, three female students from the Faculty of Fine Art were subjected to offensive verbal attacks by male outsiders.
Further incidents underscore the persistent vulnerability of female students. Near the TSC swimming pool area, students caught a male outsider taking covert, inappropriate photographs of female undergraduates during an event and handed him over to Shahbagh Police Station.
In another incident near Kabi Sufia Kamal Hall, an outsider trailed a female student from the nearby metro station whilst making indecent gestures.
“Student safety is virtually non-existent,” Sumiya Mohid, a resident of Rokeya Hall, told TIMES. “Outsiders gather right outside women’s halls to consume drugs. Theft and mugging are daily occurrences, and female students face constant harassment.”
Arif Hossain, a student residing at Muktijoddha Ziaur Rahman Hall, argued for tighter access controls, “Students entering female halls must present identity cards. Enforcing the same policy at male halls would prevent unauthorized outsiders from wandering in.”
Suhrawardy Udyan, adjacent to the university campus, has become a major thorn as both students and officials identify the park as a critical security threat. Open-air drug dealing thrives inside the park, with addicts frequently trespassing onto university property and causing violent disruptions.
Recently, several outsiders were apprehended with narcotics on the rooftop of a Jagannath Hall building.
University Proctor Professor Md Israfil Ratan confirmed that anti-drug operations inside the park will continue alongside Shahbagh Police Station. “If anyone uses university credentials to commit crimes, strict legal action will be taken against them,” he told TIMES. Shahbagh Police Station Officer-in-Charge Mohammad Moniruzzaman noted that 14 individuals were detained during an anti-drug sweep on 25 September.
Female students have also raised serious concerns over privacy breaches and contradictory hall rules, particularly regarding the unmonitored movement of male staff inside women’s residential quarters.
“The administration is so concerned about our safety that entry after 10:00 pm is strictly forbidden, even our parents or siblings are barred,” stated one female student, who requested anonymity. “Yet male mess workers move freely inside the same halls. This double standard must end. The university must hire female staff for women’s halls and reform its security policies.”
Mozammel Haque, convener of the Socialist Students’ Front’s university unit, called for immediate structural reforms to restore order on campus. He stressed the urgent need to fully activate the Anti-Sexual Harassment Cell, increase manpower within the proctorial team, and establish a dedicated Quick Response Unit.
Furthermore, Haque advocated for stricter traffic management by regulating heavy vehicles and setting firm speed limits, alongside infrastructure upgrades such as installing high-intensity street lighting and expanding CCTV coverage. He also urged the university to pressure state agencies to facilitate the treatment and rehabilitation of homeless and mentally unstable individuals currently residing on campus grounds.
Progress on broader governmental solutions remains stalled. Sarbamitra Chakma, a member of the Dhaka University Central Students’ Union (Ducsu), revealed that while an inter-ministerial strategy involving the ministries of Home Affairs, Social Welfare, Health, Law, and Public Works was agreed upon with the Social Welfare Minister, the university leadership has yet to convene the necessary meetings to execute it.
Sheikh Tanvir Bari Hamim, who contested for Ducsu general secretary as Chhatra Dal candidate, stressed the need for unified action saying, “No single political party or faction can guarantee safety for all students at Dhaka University. Every stakeholder must step forward together.”
In response to mounting criticism, Proctor Md Israfil Ratan outlined planned measures to restrict unauthorised entry and rebuild a safe academic environment.
“CCTV monitoring is being expanded across entry and exit points to properly identify commuters and prevent metro rail-related disruptions,” Professor Ratan told TIMES. He confirmed that plans are underway to install artificial intelligence-enabled CCTV cameras across 14 to 15 high-risk spots, with a formal proposal submitted to the University Grants Commission to extend AI surveillance campus-wide.
The administration also intends to bolster the proctorial workforce, introduce 24-hour mobile patrols, and establish a specialised committee to review and redefine the legal authority and policing powers of the proctorial team.
