11 Rajshahi University students in distress over notice to vacate hall common room

The students reside at Matihar Hall’s prayer room, which is used as a common room

Rajshahi University's Matihar Hall administration has instructed students to vacate the hall's common room, putting 11 non-residential students in distress.

These students have been living in the hall’s prayer room on the second floor, which is used as a common room.

The students say they began staying there after Aug 5 last year, due to financial hardship. The hall authorities did not object to this arrangement at that time.

They later applied for residential seats but received no response. With no alternatives, they had to continue living there.

A recent notice signed by the hall provost Samiul Islam Sarker instructed them to vacate the room by Jul 9.

Prabir, a 2022-23 session folklore student who goes with a single name, said: “The notice says we must leave the hall, but no alternative arrangement has been made. We've submitted our applications multiple times to the provost but received no support. He keeps telling us to leave.”

Another student, requesting not to be named, said: “The only reason we are staying here is because we can’t afford accommodation outside. If we're suddenly evicted in the middle of the month, where are we supposed to go?”

Responding to the issue, Samiul said: “They were occupying the space illegally without permission. We issued three consecutive notices, but they ignored them. Since the room is part of the mosque, we need to resume regular prayer service there.”

He added, “Those who had merit positions and applied properly have been allotted seats. The rest must follow the rules to be accommodated in the hall.”

The university's Student Advisor Amirul Islam said, “Common rooms are generally inhabited by students with financial difficulties. In this case, the hall administration should have arranged an alternative for them.

“I’m not fully aware of all the details, but I will urge the hall authorities to sit with the affected students and work out an alternative.”