Noakhali College suspends president, expels three student leaders over teacher abuse, vandalism

A+ A A-

Three leaders of the Chhatra Dal, the student wing of the Bangladesh Nationalist Party, have been expelled from their roles at Noakhali Government College following allegations of physically assaulting teachers and attacking the principal’s office.

The decision, announced Thursday morning through separate press releases signed by the central Chhatra Dal’s office secretary Md. Jahangir Alam, also included a two-month suspension of the college unit’s president, Rashel Islam. The approval of the central Chhatra Dal president, Rakibul Islam Rakib, and general secretary, Nasir Uddin Nasir, was cited in the notifications.

The expelled leaders were identified as Murshidul Rahman Rayhan, senior vice president; Akhtaruzzaman, vice president; and Tanvir Hossain, assistant general secretary of the college unit. In addition to the expulsions, former college unit president Akbar Hossain was issued a show-cause notice, requiring him to appear in person within 48 hours to provide a written explanation why he should not be permanently expelled.

The allegations stem from an incident on Wednesday, where college teachers accused Chhatra Dal leaders of ransacking the principal’s office and verbally and physically harassing faculty members. According to a report by the Teachers’ Council, the unrest had been escalating for some time, allegedly due to demands for extortion related to development work and examination fees. During the confrontation, a group of Chhatra Dal leaders reportedly entered a room where the principal and several teachers were having lunch, hurled insults, and forced them to leave. Associate Professor of Bengali, Munshadur Rahman, was allegedly physically assaulted, with his shirt buttons torn, and Associate Professor of Islamic Studies, Anwar Hossain, received death threats.

Acting Principal A.B.M. Sana Ullah confirmed that the group had been creating unpleasant situations for some days due to unpaid extortion demands, and the matter had been reported to relevant authorities.

Anti-corruption commission begins inventory of assets at dismissed general Ziaul Ahsan’s residence

Read More

However, Rashel Islam, the college unit president whose position is now suspended, denied the allegations. He claimed a misunderstanding arose during a discussion with teachers, leading to an argument. He stated that a student, in anger, broke a flower pot and a glass, but maintained that Chhatra Dal had no involvement.

The officer-in-charge of Sudharam Police Station, Md. Tohidul Islam, confirmed police visited the scene but stated no written complaint had been filed yet. He assured that necessary action would be taken after an investigation upon receiving a formal complaint.

In response to the incident, the Noakhali Government College Teachers’ Council has suspended its announced work abstention, allowing normal academic activities to resume across all departments on Thursday.

The acting principal, A.B.M. Sana Ullah, expressed that the students are vital to the institution and the teachers did not wish to disrupt their education, even at personal cost. He added that a meeting of the Teachers’ Council was scheduled for Thursday afternoon to review the situation and decide on future actions.