City College students demand resignation of principal

Dhaka City College campus remained tense on Friday as students renewed their protest demanding the resignation of acting principal Kazi Neyamul Haque.

From early morning, over a hundred students from the 25th and 26th HSC batches gathered in front of the main gate, staging a demonstration against what they described as the principal’s authoritarian rule. They raised slogans demanding the dissolution of the current administrative syndicate.

The protesting students accused Principal Neyamul Haque of running the college with an autocratic mindset, alleging that a close circle around him is involved in various administrative irregularities. The protesters vowed to boycott all academic activities—including classes, internal exams, and fee payments—until a proper investigation is conducted into the injuries sustained by some students, and those responsible are punished.

“We are peacefully protesting with legitimate demands. However, the college administration has closed the gates, denying us entry. This violates our democratic rights,” said participating students.

Raihan Hossain, a student of the 26th batch, said, “We want to attend classes and take exams, but the environment is deteriorating due to the arbitrary actions of a self-declared principal. Even after students were injured, no investigation has taken place. We will accept nothing less than his resignation.”

Tasnim Akter of the 25th batch added, “Complaints against the administration have been raised by previous batches as well, but they were always suppressed. This time, we will not allow that. We will continue our protest and reject any notices from the administration, which is not acting in the interest of students but trying to silence us by locking the gates. We stand united and will continue the movement until our demands are met.”

Meanwhile, law enforcement agencies remained on alert around the college campus. Although no untoward incidents have occurred so far, tension continues to prevail.

Earlier, on July 8, two students—Mehedi Hasan Tanim and Apu—were injured during a scuffle between teachers and students, which escalated the situation. Since then, the administration has repeatedly suspended internal exams and admission procedures.

Despite the ongoing unrest, the college authorities have not issued any formal written statements regarding the situation.