CUET students continue protest, launch signature campaign on second day

Students of Chittagong University of Engineering and Technology (CUET) continued their shutdown and sit-in protests on Wednesday, demanding the reinstatement of Vice Chancellor (VC) Professor Dr Abu Sadat Mohammad Sayem.
They also launched a mass signature campaign in support of their demand, as the protest entered its second day.
Students held a sit-in at the university’s main gate from the morning, while students from different departments joined the signature campaign and signed in support of Prof Sayem’s reinstatement.
The students said that the Ministry of Education appointed Professor Dr Sheikh Shariful Alam as the new CUET VC through a gazette notification on Monday, replacing Prof Sayem only 56 days after he took charge.
They said that the notification did not mention any reason for the sudden change.
According to a press statement issued by the students, they brought out a procession on Monday night after learning about the decision and later announced that their programmes would continue until Professor Sayem was reinstated.
The shutdown and sit-in began on Tuesday and continued on Wednesday.
In their statement, the students outlined several reasons for demanding Prof Sayem’s reinstatement.
They said that Prof Sayem had maintained direct communication with students from the beginning of his tenure, listened to their problems and taken initiatives to address them, which they said had helped build trust between the administration and students.
The students also said that the VC’s academic and administrative experience had helped create initiatives aimed at students’ academic and professional development, higher education opportunities and international exposure.
The students also urged all concerned not to associate their movement with any political identity or party position.
Meanwhile, the CUET Teachers’ Association also renewed its demand for the reinstatement of Professor Sayem as the university VC on Wednesday.