KUET crisis is turning into a farce

It is quite shocking that the KUET stalemate has now dragged on for over five months. With each passing day, this crisis is becoming more farcical, more frustrating, and more detrimental—not just to the students but also to the entire university ecosystem. And the longer it lasts, the more difficult it will be to repair the damage caused. On Wednesday, organisers of a human chain protest comprising teachers, students, and guardians demanded the immediate appointment of a VC and resumption of academic activities. On Tuesday, a platform called KUET Guardian Forum submitted a memorandum to the education adviser, highlighting the toll of prolonged academic closures and worsening session backlogs on students. The students, they warned, are falling behind their peers from other universities, many of whom have progressed through sessions, graduated, or even entered the job market.

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Don't let Kuet stalemate drag on any further

The interests of students and teachers seem aligned for now, but that may be temporary. Teachers have made the appointment of a VC a precondition for resuming classes, while students simply want classes to resume regardless of who holds the post. This subtle difference underscores the evolving development since February 18 when the crisis first started, with two student groups clashing over the issue of on-campus student politics. As we know, following that violence, students demanded the resignation of the then VC and pro-VC. Prolonged protests, including a hunger strike, eventually led to their removal. But although a new VC was appointed on May 1, he resigned on May 22, citing pressure and a lack of support from the KUET Teachers' Association. Despite a directive from the education ministry to resume academic activities from May 4, the association has continued to boycott all academic and administrative activities citing grievances forged during student protests.

While there is no alternative to the swift appointment of a VC for resuming classes, questions remain not just over how long another VC will last, when appointed, but also whether it will help put the accumulated distrust between different stakeholders to bed. This only goes to show how tumultuous the environment in public universities has become since the July uprising—the effects of which have been frequently on display. And as always, it is the ordinary students who have suffered the most.

So, while there is no alternative to the swift appointment of a VC, questions remain not just over how long another VC will last, when appointed, but also whether it will help put the accumulated distrust between different stakeholders to bed. This only goes to show how tumultuous the environment in public universities has become since the July uprising—the effects of which have been frequently on display. And as always, it is the ordinary students who have suffered the most. At KUET, the protracted stalemate has also meant that teachers, officers, and staff members have not received salaries over the past two months, as per a Jugantor report, despite their appeals for "interim measures" to allow salary disbursement. Besides, as we have previously highlighted, other administrative and financial functions have remained similarly suspended because of the absence of a VC, whose signature is mandatory for official transactions.

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Bring paralysed campuses back to life

Teachers, therefore, must bear an additional responsibility for the turnaround in the KUET stalemate, especially its damaging perpetuation. While some of their grievances are justified—and we agree with them that academic activities cannot resume or continue properly without a VC—they must be flexible in their approach and resume classes on their own given the threat to the academic future of 7,565 students. The government, on the other hand, must immediately appoint a VC and address other underlying issues. Enough time has already been lost.