High Court halts RU appointments former VC Sobhan made before departure

The High Court has ordered a halt on the appointments of 138 teachers and support staff by Prof M Abdus Sobhan, former vice-chancellor of Rajshahi University, just before his departure four months ago.

Staff Correspondentbdnews24.com
Published : 6 Sept 2021, 03:19 PM
Updated : 6 Sept 2021, 03:19 PM

Besides the three-month stay order, the court in a slew of rules on Monday asked why the appointments by Prof Sobhan on May 5 and 6 by abusing powers and violating the laws will not be declared unlawful and beyond his legal authority.

It also asked why it will not order the education secretary, the Anti-Corruption Commission chairman and the vice-chancellor of the university to act against Prof Sobhan following recommendations by an investigation committee formed by the education ministry.

The education secretary, the University Grants Commission chairman, the ACC chairman, the Rajshahi University VC, registrar and Prof Sobhan have been given four weeks to respond to the rules. 

The panel of Justice Md Mozibur Rahman Miah and Justice Md Kamrul Hossain Mollah issued the orders and the rules after initial hearings of a writ petition filed by the Consumers Association of Bangladesh or CAB on Aug 31.

Barrister Jyotirmoy Barua, who stood for the petitioner, said in a Facebook post the court also stayed the university’s teacher recruitment guidelines of 2017 and ordered the ACC to report on Nov 14 after acting against Prof Sobhan.

The education ministry launched an investigation after clashes over mass recruitments by Prof Sobhan on his last day in office that the government said were illegal.

Police escorted him out of the campus to his home in the Rajshahi University Housing Society on May 6 amid clashes between groups of Bangladesh Chhatra League, teachers, employees and job candidates.

On Dec 10 last year, the government ordered a halt on all recruitments in the university after the UGC had found evidence of irregularities in its investigations into Prof Sobhan. Just before leaving, he recruited 138 people amid the ban, thus the appointments are illegal, the ministry said. 

Prof Sobhan, who had faced adversities during the 2007-08 caretaker government, became VC in 2009 after the Awami League came to power. He had held the post until 2013 in the first stint. The government appointed him VC of the university again in 2017.