A crucial battle on reintroducing student politics is waging on the Bangladesh University of Engineering and Technology (BUET) campus for the last few days. All political elements demand a resumption of systematic student politics at BUET that would run by frameworks and strategies adopted by the students themselves while common students oppose all kinds of political activities.
Besides, two groups have been created among the alumni of the university too.
Who will win the battle? To find the answer, everyone looks at the university administration for a fair decree to conclude the bargain.
Meanwhile the High Court stayed the decision to ban student politics on the campus following a writ petition filed by a Chhatra League leader who lost his seat for arranging a political gathering on the campus at night on March 28.
On the one hand, the BUET administration seems to be flexible enough to give licence to exercise student politics on the campus again as shown while responding to the HC stay order. On the other hand, it is anticipated that the administration probably lacks the audacity to nullify general students demands.
Notably, the administration imposed a ban on all kinds of political activities following the brutal murder of Abrar Fahad at a residential hall of the university by some BCL leaders and activists in 2019.
The demand for the reintroduction of politics came to the fore when students started demonstrating on the campus, protesting the recent unauthorised entry of some BCL men led by party President Saddam Hussain inside the campus in the early hours on March 28.
In the face of students protest, the administration cancelled seat allocation of BUET student Imtiaz Rabby, also a member of the BCL central committee, for organising the political gathering inside the campus which students found an attempt to revive politics on the campus.
Students have boycotted classes and examinations demanding permanent expulsion of Rabby and five others involved in politics.
Protesters said they are not against any one party (BCL), rather they have been protesting activities of all student parties regardless of their views and understanding.
They claimed 97 per cent of the total BUET students opposed the resumption of student politics on the campus as they conducted a virtual survey on Wednesday.
On the contrary, BCL hosted a counter protest rally at Central Shaheed Minar on Sunday demanding resumption of politics on the campus and reallocation of Rabbys residential seat.
Following the programme and counter programme, other student parties are also opening their mouth and advocating for the conduct of political activities on the campus after ensuring coexistence among all parties.
But students said they want student union polls to be held regularly rather than reintroduction of organisational activities.
However, most student-wings of political parties blamed the two largest student parties -- Chhatra League and Chhatra Dal -- for the emergence of apolitical culture among the students and current turmoil on the BUET campus.
BCL President Saddam Hussain said the BUET administrations decision to ban student politics was undemocratic and unconstitutional.
He said depriving someone from exercising politics and preventing them from forming associations were a serious violation of human rights.
Acknowledging some existing drawbacks in politics, Saddam highlighted that only positive practice of politics can eradicate the
egative elements.
He thinks nipping the student politics in the bud was not a wise solution to cure the problems, Saddam said.
"BUET students will renovate the traditional landscape of student politics on their campus. They will determine the frameworks and make action plan as to how student politics will be on their campus," he added.
Saddam claimed that taking advantage of the absence of other political parties, pro-Islamic organisations including Chhatra Shibir have been conducting their activities secretly.
But Chhatra Shibir President Monzurul Islam refuted this allegation.
Monzur told The Daily Observer, "We do not have a BUET branch. No Shibir workers are backing up the current protest programmes."
However, he also stressed the need for student politics on the campus.
"We also want the resumption of student politics at BUET. But it should be done after ensuring the peaceful coexistence of all student organisations," Monzur continued.
Talking to this correspondent, Jatiyatabadi Chhatra Dal (JCD) central President Rakibul Islam Rakib said, "By brutally killing Abrar Fahad, Chhatra League has tarnished the image of student politics. Not only the BUET, Abrars murder has shaken the entire student community. Chhatra League should take full responsibility for the current turmoil on the campus. Other student organizations should not be blamed in that case."
"For the past 15 years, the Chhatra League has single-handedly controlled every educational institution in the country including BUET and Dhaka University. The residential halls are occupied. The students are being forced to join their programme," he continued.
To put an end to this culture of
agging and tagging, Rakib reinforced the practice of democratic values through ensuring healthy student politics at BUET.
Bangladesh Students Union President Dipak Shill and General Secretary Mahir Shahriar Reza said in a joint statement, "BUET students are demanding their security which is completely reasonable. But the talk of stopping student politics is unexpected.
The burden of terrorist activities of certain groups does not fall on all active student organizations."
"When Abrar Fahad was killed by BCL leaders and activists in 2019, progressive student organizations started a movement across the country. Taking the opportunity to stop student politics, we saw the rise of radical groups there. Some days ago, there was also a case of arresting about 34 BUET students on suspicion of being involved in militant activities," the statement read.
The leaders further said, "Chhatra League is responsible for creating the fear and anxiety among the common students about student politics. The terror and occupation of the Chhatra League has spread fear in the minds of the student society.
Progressive student organizations have been practicing idealistic and healthy politics on campus for a long time. So today, not student politics, but banning the activities of fundamentalist militant groups and terrorist student organizations, which have a history of terrorist activities in the past, is the appropriate solution to the crisis."
Besides, former leaders of the BUET unit Chhatra League also held a press conference demanding systematic student politics on the campus while a number of other renowned alumni said student politics in the context of Bangladesh brings nothing but destruction that substantially killed some fine brains of the country.
Talking to journalists on Sunday, BUET Vice-Chancellor Prof Satya Prasad Majumder said if teachers and students want, student politics can be reintroduced at BUET.
"We are obliged to obey the rule of court," Prof Majumder said.
He emphasized the importance of student politics as saying politics would open the eyes of students.
