Leaders of the Dhaka University Central Students’ Union (DUCSU) and hall unions, along with a group of students, staged a sit-in in front of the registrar building on Monday.
They demand immediate steps to address the acute residential accommodation crisis for first-year students of the 2025-26 academic session.
The protest, which began around 1:00 PM, later moved toward vice-chancellor's (VC) office, where student leaders placed a set of demands centring on seat shortages, administrative irregularities and alleged harassment in service delivery at the university’s administrative offices.
During the meeting with VC Professor Dr ABM Obaidul Islam, students raised concerns over severe seat scarcity in residential halls, delays in administrative services, alleged negligence by officials at the Registrar Building and reported influence in seat allocation.
Senior university officials, including Pro-vice Chancellor Professor Dr Sayma Haque Bidisha, Proctor Professor Saifuddin Ahmed and convener of the Provost Standing Committee Dr Abdullah-Al-Mamun, were also present.
Speaking to journalists after the meeting, DUCSU General Secretary (GS) SM Farhad said the protest was triggered by prolonged administrative inefficiency and lack of accountability.
He alleged that students are often forced to wait several days to complete routine administrative tasks, which should normally be resolved within a day. “Officials remain absent, services are delayed and students are left without proper support,” he said.
Farhad further stated that DUCSU had raised the housing crisis issue repeatedly over the past five months through formal and informal channels, including meetings with deans, hall administrations and provosts, but no effective measures were taken.
Outlining their demands, he called for a structured seat allocation policy, including session-based housing arrangements, mandatory vacancy rules after academic completion and financial stipends for students who fail to secure hall seats.
“Continuing academic activities without accommodation support is unacceptable and creates severe hardship for students,” he added.
In response, Vice-Chancellor Professor Dr ABM Obaidul Islam said the administration had taken note of the demands and would hold further consultations with provost standing committee.
He added that a comprehensive report detailing vacant seats and hall-wise accommodation status would be prepared by 30th of this month.
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