Students at Jahangirnagar University (JU) staged protests on Saturday night following the announcement of a hall committee by the university’s unit of the Bangladesh Jatiotabadi Chhatra Dal (BNP’s student wing), demanding a complete ban on political activities inside residential halls.
Chanting slogans such as “Against hall politics, direct action,” “Smash the black hands of hall politics,” and “One, two, three, four, hall politics no more,” demonstrators called for the immediate dissolution of the newly formed hall committee.
The protest began with a procession from Tajuddin Ahmad Hall that marched past all the dormitories before gathering in front of the vice-chancellor’s residence. Vice-Chancellor Dr. Mohammad Kamrul Ahsan came out to speak with the students, who presented him with a six-point demand.
The demands include a ban on all political activities in residential halls; a clear framework for administrative punishment against students involved in politics, ragging, or guest-room culture; formation of hall unions to safeguard students’ basic rights; distribution of any gifts from political groups solely through hall authorities without party names or symbols; preventing unauthorised intervention by outsiders in hall affairs; and immediate action against students overstaying their residential eligibility.
“I cannot make a sudden decision,” the vice-chancellor told the protesters. “We will discuss the students’ demands in Sunday’s academic council meeting and hope to give a policy decision after that.”