Students of Rajshahi College on Wednesday staged a demonstration on the campus protesting at the authorities’ decision to increase hostel seat fees to Tk 700 from Tk 500.
Several hundred students gathered in front of the college administrative building at around 12 noon, demanding immediate withdrawal of the additional charges.
During the demonstration, students alleged that outstanding utility bills and other dues from before August 5, 2023 — when the banned student wing of the Awami League, Bangladesh Chhatra League, allegedly controlled seat allotment — had been unfairly passed on to current residents.
They claimed that the hostel administration was imposing the previous unpaid amounts on current boarders by hiking the seat rent.
Citing examples from other institutions, the protesters said that even at Dhaka College — where living costs are among the highest — hostel rent did not exceed Tk 400.
They said that the higher fees at Rajshahi College would put an additional financial burden on students.
They alleged that no other public educational institution charged such high hostel rent.
Khalid Bin Walid Abir, convener of the Rajshahi College unit of Jatiyatabadi Chhatra Dal, said that after August 5 past year, the college authorities had assured them that hostel seat fees would not be increased within the following year.
Mosharraf Hossain, secretary of the Rajshahi College unit of Islami Chhatra Shibir, said that their organisation expressed solidarity with the protesting students, as the additional fees would become a major burden for most boarders.
The demonstration was postponed after college principal professor Zahur Ali, along with other officials, assured the students that their demands would be considered.
Professor Zahur Ali told ¶¶Òõ¾«Æ· that the college administration would hold a meeting with residential students on May 22 to take a final decision on the hostel seat fees.
