Female students smash lock to re-enter Rokeya Hall at KUET

The university's only female residential hall has been locked for two months

Protesting students at the Khulna University of Engineering & Technology (KUET) have now broken into Rokeya Hall, the institution's sole female residential hall.

Around 6:30pm on Tuesday, a group of 20-25 female students broke the lock and forcibly entered the hall, which had been locked for the past two months.

The students, who had gathered outside the hall, said while 20-25 of them had entered, many others were still outside.

“They will also enter the hall in the next day or two.”

This incident comes as students continue their hunger strike demanding the resignation of Vice-Chancellor (VC) Prof Mohammad Mashud.

Earlier, on Apr 15, students had broken the locks of five residential halls, including Fazlul Haque Hall and Amar Ekushey Hall, to express their discontent with the university administration.

Tensions at the university have been high since Feb 18, when clashes broke out between the Chhatra Dal – the BNP’s student wing - and supporters of the Anti-discrimination Student Movement on campus over a demand to halt student politics.

More than 50 students were injured in the clashes.

The following day, the students locked all academic buildings, including the administrative building in protest.

That afternoon, the university's syndicate met and decided to suspend all political activities at the KUET.

A committee was formed to investigate the incident. That night, the administration filed a case against 400 to 500 unidentified people at Khanjahan Ali Police Station.

On Feb 20, students held a protest rally on the campus to demand a ban on all political student organisations.

On Feb 23, the students came to Dhaka from Khulna and submitted a memorandum to Chief Advisor Muhammad Yunus.

It included six demands, including the trial of those involved in the violence and the resignation of the VC.

On Feb 25, the university syndicate decided to close the residential halls indefinitely at its 99th emergency meeting.

All students were ordered to vacate the halls by 10am the next day.