New CUET VC enters administrative building after breaking lock

Newly appointed Chittagong University of Engineering and Technology (CUET) Vice-Chancellor Professor Dr Sheikh Shariful Alam broke the lock on Administrative Building-2 and entered the campus on Monday morning amid an ongoing shutdown at the university.

He entered the building at around 7:45am on 12 October, CUET sources confirmed to the Daily Sun.

According to relevant sources, the vice-chancellor was scheduled to attend an important meeting at the University Grants Commission (UGC) in Dhaka on 11 and 12 October. He was reportedly scheduled to travel to Dhaka on the afternoon of 10 October.

During his absence, Professor Dr Md Arafat Rahman of the Department of Mechanical Engineering was assigned routine duties as vice-chancellor for 11 and 12 October. Although the newly appointed vice-chancellor was reportedly in Dhaka in line with his previously announced schedule, he unexpectedly arrived at the CUET campus on Monday morning.

Professor Dr Abu Sadat Muhammad Sayem was removed from the vice-chancellor’s post on 21 September, just 56 days after taking office. A notification announcing Professor Dr Sheikh Shariful Alam’s appointment as his successor was issued the same day.

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Protesting the decision, students locked the administrative building that night. From 22 September, they have been boycotting classes and examinations as part of an all-out shutdown programme.

Meanwhile, teachers, officers and employees have been observing work stoppages and sit-in programmes, demanding the reinstatement of former vice-chancellor Professor Dr Abu Sadat Muhammad Sayem.

The protests have brought the university’s academic and administrative activities to a standstill.