Leaders and activists of Islami Chhatra Shibir, the student wing of Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami, on Wednesday protested against the ongoing shutdown being enforced by teachers and officials of Rajshahi University.
RU officials, however, on Wednesday called off their part in the shutdown, but teachers went on with the programme over ward quota.
Shibir formed a human chain in front of the central library of the university at 11:00am on the day, where the leaders and activists said that the strike was part of a conspiracy to foil the long-awaited Rajshahi University Central Students鈥� Union elections.
The shutdown announced for an indefinite period continued for the fourth consecutive day on Wednesday, paralysing all academic and administrative activities on the campus.
The current crisis began on September 18, when the university reinstated the ward quota facility, allowing children of teachers, officers and employees admission privileges in undergraduate courses under 鈥榠nstitutional facilities鈥�. The move sparked protests from students.
On Saturday, students opposing the reinstatement of the ward quota scuffled with teachers and staff, leaving several injured. In response, a section of teachers, officials and employees announced the ongoing shutdown on Saturday night.
On Sunday, the university syndicate suspended admissions under the ward quota and formed two probe committees to investigate Saturday鈥檚 incident.
Amid the crisis, the RUCSU election commission on Monday night deferred the elections to RUCSU, hall unions, and Senate student representatives to October 16 from September 25.
Addressing the human chain on Wednesday, RU unit Shibir president Mostakur Rahman Jahid alleged that some teachers representing a particular political party were behind the unrest, which made the university authorities to defer the RUCSU elections.
鈥楾heir aim is to disrupt academic activities and delay the polls,鈥� he said.
Though RU officials called off their part in the shutdown, they gave the university administration a seven-day ultimatum to punish those responsible for assaulting three teachers and to withdraw the suspension of admissions under the institutional quota.
At a press briefing, officers鈥� association president Moktar Hossain said they were suspending their strike following a request from the university administration so that academic and administrative activities could resume.
Bangladesh Nationalist Party-backed Jatiyatabadi Shikkhak Forum, however, announced that the complete shutdown would continue until the perpetrators of Saturday鈥檚 assault were punished.
On January 2, the university abolished the ward quota following student protests. In August, however, a section of teachers, officers, and employees launched a movement demanding reinstatement of the facility.