Women students thrown out of Sufia Kamal Hall

The news that some female students were ousted from Dhaka University's Sufia Kamal Hall around midnight came as a shock to me. According to the news reports, the authorities first denied that it had ever happened. Later, they confirmed it to be true when they were again challenged, only this time with proof. The university VC said that it was done to protect the dignity of the hall. How is that possible? I would rather say that the incident in fact tainted the overall image of the university.

In the aftermath of the quota reform movement, the authorities have tried to single out protesters simply because they had exercised their fundamental right to free speech, to dissent. Now, the university is punishing its own students. This is indeed a shameful chapter for an institution as renowned as Dhaka University, which was once known as the beacon of our freedom and democracy.

Rokeya Begum, By e-mail