Protests continue at JU after rape on campus

Students and teachers of Jahangirnagar University continued their protests for the second day demanding exemplary punishment of the accused in the case filed over the rape of a 19-year-old woman on campus last Saturday.

Students engaged in mass poster distribution, human chains, and a protest procession on the campus to realise their demands. 

Meanwhile, in the face of the students' protest, the university administration on Monday filed a written complaint at the Ashulia police station against the accused in the rape incident.

Md Abu Hasan, registrar of the university, filed the complaint, seeking legal action against the perpetrators and those who aided their escape.

Ashulia Police Station Officer-in-Charge (OC) AFM Dayed told The Business Standard, "We have received the written complaint from the university administration. Further legal action will be taken after investigating the allegations."

Earlier, the family of the victim filed a case against six people at Ashulia Police Station and police arrested four of them.

The arrestees are Mostafizur Rahman, international affairs secretary of the JU unit of Bangladesh Chhatra League (BCL); Sabbir Hasan Sagar, Sagar Siddique, and Hasanuzzaman. 

Earlier on 3 February, Mostafizur and Mamun allegedly raped a woman near Mir Mosharraf Hossain Hall while keeping her husband locked in a room in the dormitory.

Also, the teachers and students of the university held a discussion meeting in the teachers' lounge of the new art building of the university on Monday.

In the meeting, an "anti-oppression platform" was formed consisting of teachers and students.

The platform plans a human chain protest on Tuesday and intends to form a committee to address safety concerns.

After the meeting, Professor Parveen Jolly, a history department representative, outlined additional demands, including the removal of all non-students from university halls within three days. Failure to comply, she warned, would lead to protests demanding the resignations of the proctor of Mir Mosharraf Hossain Hall and the university's vice-chancellor.

Despite facing criticism for its members' alleged involvement, the JU unit of BCL held a separate silent candlelight vigil at the Shaheed Minar in solidarity with the victim.