Recruitment Suspension: RU will want to know why

Rajshahi University authorities would want to know from the education ministry the reasons for postponing all kinds of appointments to the university until further notice.

RU Vice Chancellor Prof M Abdus Sobhan yesterday also said he would talk to the media later regarding his steps to relieve Prof Abdul Bari from the post of university registrar.

"We will respond to the orders regarding the recruitment policy," Sobhan said while talking to reporters after a programme on the campus.

He made the comments as the ministry in an order on December 10 postponed all kinds of appointments to RU until further notice due to "administrative reasons".

In separate orders on Sunday, the government asked Sobhan to explain in seven working days why the appointments of his daughter and son-in-law to the university as teachers should not be cancelled.

It also asked the VC to take necessary steps to relieve Registrar Abdul Bari from his post for not properly assisting a University Grants Commission (UGC) committee in probing allegations of irregularities at the university.

The UGC in its probe report submitted in October 20 recommended taking actions against the VC, Pro-VC Prof Choudhury M Zakaria and others concerned over the matter. It also suggested scrapping the appointments of 34 teachers, who were recruited under "relaxed university rules".

"They [education ministry] cited administrative reasons while giving order [regarding the recruitment postponement]. We will want to know the reasons from them. We will see how this can be resolved," Sobhan said.

The ministry on Sunday issued separate orders asking the pro-VC, the registrar, Prof Mujibur Rahman of physics, Prof Mohammad Abdul Hannan and Assistant Prof Shibli Islam of law, Assistant Prof Gazi Towhidur Rahman of material science and engineering and Deputy Registrar Shakhawat Hossain to explain in seven working days why legal actions would not be taken against them for relaxing education qualifications for recruitments to the university.

Talking to The Daily Star yesterday, Hannan and Mujibur said they received the letter and would give their explanations within the stipulated time.

Mujibur said he was not involved in any process of relaxing the education qualifications for recruitment to the university.

"The UGC probe found evidence of corruption of the VC, this had also proved his moral turpitude. He should resign from his post taking the responsibilities of all these misdeeds," said Prof Sultan ul Islam of geology and mining, also the convener of Teachers' Society against Corruption, that has been protesting irregularities in RU.

He said the government should remove the VC if he does not step down.

According to the UGC probe report, VC Prof Sobhan occupied a duplex of the university for 18 months showing various excuses. A government order issued on Sunday asked the VC to deposit Tk 5.61 lakh as rent into the public exchequer.

During the investigation, the UGC probe committee found evidence of 25 kinds of irregularities and corruption committed by top members of the university administration.

The probe found that the VC provided false information to the chancellor on voluntary retirement and practiced nepotism in recruiting teachers; the VC and the others appointed heads of different departments violating university rules, and officials were involved in irregular financial transactions.

"The teacher recruitment rules were relaxed with an ill intention…. Candidates having lower qualifications were recruited instead of qualified ones," it said.