Dhaka University (DU) administration has decided to temporarily suspend Professor Sadeka Halim, a former vice-chancellor of Jagannath University and a professor in the Department of Sociology, following various allegations.
Alongside her, two other teachers and one official have been suspended, while four additional teachers have been relieved of all academic and administrative responsibilities.
These decisions were announced in a press release issued by the university’s Public Relations Office on Thursday, following a syndicate meeting chaired by the Vice-Chancellor (VC), Professor ABM Obaidul Islam.
According to the syndicate’s decision, Professor Sadeka Halim was suspended for unprofessional conduct both inside and outside the classroom, moral turpitude, and other complaints.
It was said in 2022, she was elected as a member of Awami League’s advisory council, an organisation whose activities are currently banned. When approached by journalists regarding the matter, Sadeka said she would not comment until a final decision is reached by the tribunal.
The university also suspended Professor Md Shafiqul Islam and Professor Afroza Shelley of the Department of Nuclear Engineering based on complaints from various student batches and the findings of a fact-finding committee.
Moreover, Professor Md Abdul Muhit of the Department of Clinical Pharmacy and Pharmacology was removed from his post as department chairman and relieved of all academic and administrative duties for activities deemed contrary to the spirit of the July mass uprising, engaging in anti-government and anti-administration propaganda, supporting banned organisations, and issuing threats.
Similar disciplinary actions were taken against Professor Abu Sara Syamshur Rouf of the Department of Pharmaceutical Technology and Professor Md Rafiqul Islam (Rafiq Shahriar) of the Department of Peace and Conflict Studies.
In a separate instance, Professor Mohammad Bahauddin of the Department of Persian Language and Literature has been relieved of all academic and administrative duties following allegations of departmental irregularities and plagiarism in MPhil and PhD research papers.
Within the administrative sector, AKM Mahbub Mustafa, a superintending engineer (Civil) in the Office of the Chief Engineer, was suspended for violating office discipline.
The Syndicate has further constituted a high-level investigation committee to scrutinise transparency and potential irregularities in teacher recruitments conducted between 1 January 2009 and June 2024.
This committee is chaired by the Pro-Vice-Chancellor (Academic), Professor Abdus Salam, and includes the Deans of all faculties.
A second committee, headed by Pro-Vice-Chancellor (Administration) Professor Mohammad Almujaddade Alfasane, has been tasked with investigating research activities and the proper utilisation of funds under the Higher Education Quality Enhancement Project (HEQEP), which was funded by the World Bank and University Grants Commission (UGC) during the same period.
