KHULNA, Apr 24 - Amid students' movement, Vice-Chancellor Prof Moham-med Masud and Pro-Vice-Chancellor Professor Dr SK Shariful Alam of Khulna University of Engineering and Technology (KUET) have resigned.
They submitted their resignation letters to the Ministry of Education on Wednesday night, according to an official from the Scholarship and Engineering Section of the Secondary and Higher Education Division.
Following the development, the protesting students of KUET broke their fast early Thursday after 58 hours of hunger strike at 1:00am on Thursday.
Prof Tanzimuddin Khan, a member of the University Grants Commission (UGC), fed the protesting students juices, after reading out the official message from the Ministry of Education, stating that in light of the recent events and to restore normal academic atmosphere, the VC and pro-VC were relieved.
Hearing the message, the students brought out a joyous procession chanted different slogans and later returned to their dormitories.
Demanding the resignation of Vice Chancellor Prof Mohammad Masud, KUET students have been protesting for the last few days following a hunger strike from last Monday.
On Wednesday at noon, the authorities withdrew the expulsion of 37 students, some of whom were leading the movement and reopened dormitories. The academic activities of the university will also begin on May 4, this decision was taken at the university syndicate meeting, yesterday.
In response to the ongoing unrest at KUET, the government has begun the process of removing the Vice-Chancellor and Pro-Vice-Chancellor from their positions. This move aims to address the crisis and restore normal academic activities at the university.
A search committee will be formed to appoint new officials, while a senior professor will temporarily serve as acting VC. The decision was announced in a press release by the Information and Broadcasting Ministry, citing the Ministry of Education last night.
Meanwhile, The Khulna University of Engineering & Technology (KUET) Teachers' Association on Thursday in a statement, said the decision to remove the Vice-Chancellor and Pro-Vice-Chancellor under pressure and without a proper investigation marks a defeat of justice.
This was stated in a press release on Thursday by the KUET Teachers Association's President, Prof Dr Md Shahidul Islam, and General Secretary, Prof Dr Faruk Hossain.
In the statement, they said, "We wanted a politically neutral campus. But now, those who were advocating for such a campus seem to be trapped in the grip of dark politics.
Because of this, all efforts made by the teachers to resolve the crisis that arose on the campus on February 18 have failed."
The statement also added that if such activities continue in educational institutions even eight months after the glorious July mass uprising, it could not only disrupt university life but also threaten the overall discipline.
The Teachers' Association expressed deep concern over this. However, they assured that teachers would always strive to restore a healthy academic environment at the university.
