JU suspends 17 students

The authorities of Jahangirnagar University (JU) have suspended 17 students for different periods over sexual harassment, for beating up fellow students and taking drugs on the campus.

The suspension terms would be effective from January 18 when the JU syndicate in a meeting approved the suspension order with Vice-Chancellor Prof Farzana Islam in the chair, said Rahima Kaniz, acting registrar of JU, told our correspondent.

JU authorities issued an official order in this regard today.

Of the suspended students, 11 are of the Department of Microbiology were suspended for sexual harassment and for posting deformed derogatory photos of female students and teachers of the university in social media, three for beating up fellow students, two for taking drugs on the campus and one for another incident of sexual harassment of a student of Drama and Dramatics Department, according to the suspension order.

The suspended students are: Md Naim-E-Akter, Ijaz Ahmed, Md Mehedi Hasan, Md Iqbal Hossain, Md Sajib Hossain, Al Amin Shaishab, Md Abu Naim, GM Tariqul Islam, Md Shahriar Khan, Nahidul Islam, and Omar Faruq of the Department of Microbiology, Md Rizwan Rashed Sohan of the Department of Drama and Dramatics, KM Mahid Hasan of the Department of Archeology, Ahsanuzzaman Sawon of The Department of Marketing, Sazzad Hossain Sayem of the Department of Computer Science and Engineering, Moeen Uddin Jony of the Department of Bangla, and Azgar Hossain Rabbi, a fourth-year student of the Department of Drama and Dramatics.

The students were suspended for different terms from three months to one year and three of them were fined Tk 5,000 each.

The syndicate has also issued warnings to more than 13 other students over the different offences.

In 2017, around 17 female students brought allegations against the 12 students of Microbiology department for making a secret Facebook group and uploading deformed and ‘derogatory’ photos of their classmates and female teachers there.

In another incident, three students -- Sohan, Mahid, and Sawon -- were accused for their involvement in beating up four fellow students including a female student.

On the other hand, Sayem and Jony were caught red-handed by fellow students while taking drugs in room No. 335 of AFM Kamaluddin Hall on August 11, 2017. 

Rabbi, a fourth-year student of the Department of Drama and Dramatics, was accused of harassing a female student of the same department in a laboratory in 2017.