Jagannath University students continue strike demanding new halls

The students of Jagannath University (JnU) have taken to the streets with renewed vigour after locking the institution's main gate to continue their strike demanding new residential halls.

They also did not let the teachers' bus enter the university since they blocked the road in front of the gate and took out a procession around 8am on Tuesday.

They then put locks on the gates of all buildings, including the administrative building, on the campus.

Additional police personnel have been deployed around the students' demonstrations to maintain security.

One of the coordinators of the protests, Monirul Islam Rajan, told bdnews24.com that the students would continue their movement until their demands were met.

The JnU students have been demonstrating since Aug 2 to demand the construction of new residential halls at the spot where the Dhaka Central Jail was previously situated on Nazimuddin Road in Old Dhaka.

Last Wednesday, the students were barred by police while trying to lay a siege to the education ministry. They had abstained from classes and tests at the university on Thursday and Sunday.

The students on Monday had announced an abstention from classes and tests on Tuesday and Wednesday after police prevented them from marching to the Prime Minister’s Office, where they had planned to submit a memorandum listing their demands.

Established in 2005, the only non-residential university of the country had 11 dormitories in different areas in Old Dhaka.

But all of them were gradually taken over by influential local citizens.

As the students’ movement began to expand in 2009, the government took an initiative to recover the halls.

But despite recommendations from the land ministry, the Dhaka district administration did not take steps to hand over ownership of several halls to the university authorities.

Two of the halls were recovered in 2011 and 2014, but they are yet to be renovated for use.

Another hall is still occupied by a local influential person, with no plan in place to have it back.

The university authorities have also been planning to build two new halls, but there has been no progress on the matter.