NITER registrar, adviser resign after student demo

Adviser and register of Ashulia's National Institute of Textile Engineering and Research (NITER) resigned today in the face of student demonstration that started yesterday.

NITER Principal Prof Dr Md Abdul Mottalib confirmed the matter on their resignation to The Daily Star this evening.

After the news of the resignation, the students withdrew their demonstration 24 hours after they began the protest demanding the resignations of Registrar Kazi Andalib Amin and Adviser Prof Mizanur Rahman based on allegations of irregularities and corruption.

Yesterday, hundreds of students started demonstrating in front of NITER's administrative building in Noyar Haat area, confining Registrar Kazi Andalib and some other teachers inside the building.

The registrar and teachers managed to leave the building around 2am after police rushed to the spot upon receiving information.

The students said, a principal and a 16-member governing council are currently running the institute. "Before Principal Dr Mizanur Rahman retired in October, he created a post of adviser for himself to control the institution," they alleged.

There are allegations of corruption and other irregularities against them when he was in the chair, the demonstrators said.

Solaiman Hawlader, a fourth-year student of Industrial and Production Engineering department, said even though the annual income of the institute is around Tk 2,600 crore, they do not have enough teachers, accommodation, and lab facilities.

The registrar assaulted two teachers earlier for protesting the irregularities, he claimed.

Denying the allegations, Prof Mizan said he is holding no post in the institution. A governing body is running the institute in a public-private partnership, he said.