Several hundred students from the seven colleges previously affiliated with Dhaka University marched towards the Shikkha Bhaban in Dhaka on Monday morning, demanding the issuance of an ordinance to establish the proposed Dhaka Central University.
The protesters declared that they would not return to classes until the government announced a specific date for promulgating the ordinance.
On September 24, the Secondary and Higher Education Division under the Ministry of Education published the draft of the Dhaka Central University Ordinance, 2025 on its website, seeking feedback from stakeholders.
Dhaka College student Nayim Howlader said students were frustrated by what they saw as a prolonged delay in finalising the university鈥檚 establishment.
鈥榃e do not want any more delays,鈥� he said. 鈥楾he authorities must announce a specific date for issuing the ordinance,鈥� he added.
Students from Dhaka College, Eden Mohila College, Kabi Nazrul Government College, and Government Shaheed Suhrawardy College, among others, brought out processions from their respective campuses in the morning and later gathered near the Shikkha Bhaban.
By around 11:00am, the demonstrators began a sit-in in front of a police barricade near the Shikkha Bhaban, close to the Bangladesh Secretariat. The protest was continuing as of 12:30pm when this report was filed. A large contingent of police was deployed to maintain law and order in the area.
The protesters urged the authorities to promptly finalise and issue the draft ordinance after reviewing the opinions received, regardless of the final model chosen for the proposed university 鈥� which is expected to include the seven government colleges.
The seven colleges are: Dhaka College, Begum Badrunnesa Government Girls鈥� College, Eden Mohila College, Government Bangla College, Government Shaheed Suhrawardy College, Government Titumir College, and Kabi Nazrul Government College.
These institutions were brought under Dhaka University in 2017 after being previously affiliated with the National University.
Following widespread student protests, the Dhaka University authorities decided on January 27 this year to end their affiliation with the seven colleges.
However, since the publication of the draft ordinance, a section of teachers and students from the colleges have expressed reservations about the proposed structure of Dhaka Central University.
