The Jahangirnagar University unit of the Jatiyatabadi Chhatra Dal (JCD) has boycotted a programme of the Jahangirnagar University Journalists' Association (JUJA) today due to the presence of Islami Chhatra Shibir leaders.

The ceremony was held yesterday [Friday] morning at the Zahir Raihan Auditorium on the JU campus.

The JU vice-chancellor and leaders from various organisations were invited to the programme.

However, JCD leaders and activists boycotted the event upon discovering that the JU unit Chhatra Shibir president and general secretary were among the guests.

Talking to the journalists, JCD JU unit Convenor Zahir Uddin Mohammad Babor said, "In 1989, Shibir men were directly involved in the murder of JCD leader Habibur Rahman Kabir. Following this incident, 22 student organisations, including JUJA, collectively declared Shibir unwanted on campus. Until the unresolved issues are addressed, we see no scope for sitting at the same table with Shibir men. However, we have already congratulated the JUJA leadership separately."

On October 30 last year, Islami Chhatra Shibir re-emerged at Jahangirnagar University after 35 years.

JUJA General Secretary Abdullah Al Mamun said, "We invited JCD to the handover ceremony, but they did not attend. They also did not inform us about any decision to boycott the event."

Regarding the ban on Shibir, Mamun stated, "We have no specific documentation confirming that JUJA was one of the 22 organisations that declared Shibir unwanted in 1989. If such documents are provided, we will discuss the matter in an executive meeting and announce our stance."