Supreme Court permits Dhaka University to hold senate meeting on Jul 29

The Supreme Court has halted a High Court order that barred DU authorities from holding a senate meeting for electing vice-chancellor.

The latest order removed the legal bar on holding the meeting on Jul 29 as scheduled, said advocate Mezbah Uddin, who argued for Dhaka University.

Justice Syed Mahmud Hossain, chamber judge of the top court, passed the order on Wednesday after hearing the petitioners.

The Supreme Court also issued a rule asking why the meeting should be considered a breach of rules and why the notice for the meeting should be declared illegal.

Vice-Chancellor AAMS Arefin Siddiqui, the pro-VC (education), the pro-VC (administration), the registrar and the education secretary have been made the respondents.

The chamber judge has fixed Jul 30 for hearing the full matter.

The High Court halted the senate meeting earlier on appeals that the meeting lacked any registered representative of the graduates.

The DU registrar sent letters to senate members on Jul 16 inviting them to the meeting.

As per the University Ordinance 1973, senate members cast ballots to elect three persons for a panel of vice-chancellors. The chancellor of the university, who is the president of the country, appoints one from them as the university’s vice-chancellor.

The senate is formed with representatives of students, teachers and graduates. A total of 25 people represent the graduates at the senate.

Fifteen people including professors and assistant professors of DU filed a writ petition challenging the call for the meeting. They stood against holding any senate meeting without electing the representatives of graduates first.

The High Court halted the meeting on their plea and also ordered Dhaka University authorities to form the senate as per the University Ordinance.