Take action against the unruly BCL activists at NSTU

It is disquieting to learn that at least 15 people, including a hall provost, were injured in the clashes between the two factions of Bangladesh Chhatra League (BCL) in the Shaheed Abdus Salam Hall of Noakhali Science and Technology University (NSTU). As the infighting between the two factions had continued for several days, the university authorities closed down the hall for an indefinite period. Unsurprisingly, when the law enforcers raided the hall, they recovered a large amount of sharp weapons from several rooms of the dorm. The hall is now in a deplorable condition as the furniture and other things of most of the rooms were destroyed by the BCL activists.

Rivalry and clashes between different factions of BCL in our public universities have become so common that the university authorities hardly seem to take the matter seriously. Although such armed fights hamper the regular academic activities of the universities and create panic among the general students, we have not yet heard of any measures taken by the BCL central committee to reign in the rogue elements of their student organisations across the public universities. Needless to say, the university authorities generally play the role of silent spectators in such situations. 

The number of sharp weapons recovered from the Abdus Salam Hall of NSTU only proves that the hall has become a den of all kinds of criminal activities. This also indicates that no administrative action had been taken against those possessing the weapons. The NSTU authorities should take action against the BCL activists involved in the clashes. They should hold the students accountable for possessing sharp weapons on campus and should also consider filing cases against them. We also hope that the BCL central committee would take the matter seriously and do the needful in order to prevent the recurrence of clashes among their activists at the university.