Students from the seven affiliated colleges of Dhaka University, who are demanding the cancellation of the affiliation and the establishment of an autonomous university, have once again issued a 24-hour ultimatum after blocking roads for three hours on Wednesday.
The students concluded their protest after issuing the ultimatum, announcing a deadline until Saturday for authorities to address their demands.
Abdur Rahman, a student of Dhaka College and a coordinator of the movement, announced the next steps around 2:45 PM. He said, "We, the students of the seven colleges, will hold public outreach programs across our campuses on Thursday. There will be no protests on Friday. We will wait until Saturday for any decision on this matter and if nothing happens, we will announce our next course of action in front of Dhaka College's main gate in the afternoon."
Earlier, at noon, hundreds of students left Dhaka College and marched to Science Lab intersection to begin their protest. After some time, they moved to Nilkhet and then returned to Dhaka College's main gate, where they gathered to continue their demonstration, leading to traffic congestion in the New Market area.
During the protest, students chanted slogans such as "Cancel affiliation, make the seven colleges independent," "One demand, one goal: no more affiliation," "No more reforms, we want rights," "Education, not business," and "2024: No more affiliation."
Sulaiman Sikder, a Dhaka College student, said, "We are protesting as part of our pre-announced program to push forward our three-point demand for the establishment of an independent public university."
On Monday, students held a similar protest in front of Dhaka College, calling for the same demands.
The students' main demands include the immediate formation of a reform committee to create a roadmap for establishing a new autonomous public university comprising the seven colleges. This committee would have 30 working days to consult with teachers, students, and stakeholders to prepare the framework for the university.
The reform committee would also work with Dhaka University authorities to ensure that the current academic structure remains functional and that ongoing students do not face session delays.
