A legal notice was served on the authorities concerned, seeking cancellation of the ward quota for the children and grand-children of the university teachers, officials and employees for the Rajshahi University admission to undergraduate courses.
Supreme Court lawyer Md Nazimuddin, also a former RU graduate, served the notice to the education ministry adviser and secretary, university grant commission chairman, RU vice-chancellor and registrar on Sunday, requesting the latter to take action within seven days upon receiving the legal notice.
The notice said that if the authorities failed to take action within the stipulated time, a writ petition would be filed with the High Court in this regard.
Earlier on Thursday, the RU admission committee decided to cancel the quota facility for freedom fighters鈥� grandchildren, but to retain the five per cent quota for their children for admission to undergraduate courses under the 2024-25 academic session.
They, however, decided to keep the ward quota for the children and grand-children of the university teachers, officials and employees.
RU authorities by taking decision and extending undue privilege to a group of students in the name of Ward Quota, the notice said, has infringed the Article 19 and fundamentals rights, as guaranteed under Articles 27/28/31 of the Constitution, of other meritorious students who were deprived in the previous academic sessions and are going to be deprived to be admitted thereto due to reserving 3 per cent ward quota in the forthcoming academic session 2024-2025.
鈥楢s per news reports in the previous academic sessions, the RU authorities admitted many students under the ward quota even extending grace mark, after publishing intake test result, to those who failed to secure pass mark which is nothing but out and out illegal, unconstitutional, without jurisdiction and colorable exercises of administrative power and infringement of policy of state as well as the Government,鈥� it reads.
The Rajshahi University Act, 1973 does not empower the university authorities at all to extend and reserve Ward Quota for a group of students which is also contrary to law of the land and the policy of state as well as the Government whereas the children of the university teachers and officers are in no way to be treated as underprivileged or backward section, it further reads.
