Dhaka University (DU) witnessed heated protests late Friday night as students from various residential halls demonstrated against the announcement of new hall-based committees by the Jatiyatabadi Chhatra Dal (JCD).
The protests began around midnight and quickly spread across the campus.
Tensions escalated when female students from Rokeya Hall and Shamsunnahar Hall broke the locks of their gates to join the demonstration.
Marching through different campus streets, they chanted slogans such as “One, two, three, four– Hall politics no more” and “No politics in the halls.”
The protesters later gathered in front of the Vice-Chancellor’s (VC) residence, demanding a complete ban on all forms of student politics– both open and underground– in residential halls.
At around 2:30 a.m., DU Vice-Chancellor Professor Dr. Niaz Ahmed Khan came out to speak with the students.
Citing a July 17, 2024 directive, the VC assured them that hall-level politics would remain “controlled,” but students rejected the partial restriction, insisting on a total prohibition. They also demanded punishment for members of underground Shibir networks and the newly formed JCD committees in the halls.
Proctor Saifuddin Ahmed eventually made a clear declaration: “Both open and underground politics are prohibited in all residential halls of Dhaka University.”
The announcement was met with loud applause and chants from the crowd: “Breaking news: Hall Politics has been banned!”
Before dispersing around 3 a.m., the protesters announced six demands, including: The VC must explain why the committees were announced, Dissolution of all existing underground and open political committees in the halls within 24 hours, A complete framework to keep halls free of political activities, Accountability from hall provosts for failing to prevent politics, and Immediate implementation of the Dhaka University Central Students’ Union (DUCSU).
The unrest began earlier on Friday after DU’s JCD unit announced hall-level convening committees in 18 halls, despite an existing ban on such activities.
The move sparked criticism and ignited one of the largest student protests at DU in recent months.
