Groundxero | 7 July, 2023

81 teachers and scholars associated with different universities and research institutions in Bangladesh have demanded the withdrawal of suspension orders of the four Professors from South Asian University (SAU), Delhi. In a statement issued by them, the teachers and scholars, affiliated with different Bangladeshi universities, have denounced the “humiliation and insult to faculty members” of SAU and extended solidarity with the teachers, students and researchers of the SAU.

On June 16, South Asian University (SAU) suspended four faculty members in connection with the 2022 student protests over allegations of misconduct and violation of the university’s code of conduct. The university has accused the faculty members of instigating students to protest, failing to perform appropriate duties and having association with a Marxist study circle. They were told to vacate their offices, not to leave Delhi, return their office computers and identity cards and register their attendance on all working days in the offices of their respective deans. Calling such humiliation and insult to faculty members as “unheard of in academia”, the scholars from Bangladesh said, “We would like to bring the attention of SAARC to this issue.” They added, “No academic freedom is guaranteed when students, teachers and researchers can be subjected to such abhorrent malpractices.”

They said, “The situation at South Asian University, a higher education institution brought forth by the international collaboration of the eight SAARC countries is becoming a source of dismay and anxiety in regional academia. The incidents that gradually unfolded from October 2022 onward have exposed how academic freedom has been rendered weak and powerless in the face of regional autocratic governments and fascist, often populist, ideologues.”

Earlier, teachers affiliated to different unions in India, had denounced the suspension and termed it “illegal and an assault on academic freedom”. They had said out that the suspension order by the SAU administration, accusing the faculty members of “instigating” students’ protest in the university, must be seen as a part of the larger thrust to further curb the space for ideas that militate for democratization of society, challenge authoritarianism, and uphold economic and social justice.

The solidarity statement of the teachers and scholars from Bangladesh is published here :

Demanding withdrawal of suspension of the  four Professors from South Asian University,  Delhi 

To whom it may concern:

The situation at South Asian University, a higher education institution brought forth by the  international collaboration of the eight SAARC countries is becoming a source of dismay and  anxiety in regional academia. The incidents that gradually unfolded from October 2022 onward have exposed how academic freedom has been rendered weak and powerless in the face of regional autocratic governments and fascist, often populist, ideologues.

South Asian University, with its campus in New Delhi in India, is an international university  sponsored by the eight Member States of the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation  (SAARC), i.e. Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Maldives, Nepal, Pakistan, and Sri Lanka. Its  degrees are accredited in and recognized by the University Grants Commission of all the eight  SAARC countries. This model could have proved to be a milestone for enhancing cross boundary academic practice, cultural exchange and upholding academic freedom in the age of rising  authoritarianism and manipulative politics. However, that has not proved to be true. The events that unfolded from October 2022 have demonstrated that no educational institutes are free from the poisons of despotism that is haunting all of South Asia.

It started in late 2022 when the university administration called in the Delhi police to disperse students who were peacefully protesting against the reduction of masters’ students’ monthly stipends and the lack of student representation in university statutory committees. Despite repeated advocacy of fifteen faculty members on behalf of the students and their disapproval of the police intervention, the administration expelled five students on no grounds. This led to indefinite hunger strikes of students, leading to emergency hospitalization of one student named Ammar Ahmad, who remains permanently affected to date. The university retracted their previous expulsion order in the face of wide protest, but then expelled two PhD students right before the  movement dropped traction when the university moved to its permanent campus in 2022’s  winter. During the winter break Ripon Ahmed Chowdhury, a Bangladeshi student from Computer Science committed suicide upon his return home to Bangladesh. These incidents raise serious concerns about the SAU administration’s role in ensuring the physical and mental wellbeing of the students from both India and other countries.

On December 30, 2022; the university administration sent notice to four faculty members asking them to respond to charges that include: writing letters to the university community questioning certain administrative decisions related to the student protests, instigating students to protest, failure to perform appropriate duties and to follow university rules and regulations, association with Marxist study circle, visiting Ammar Ahmad in hospital, etc. These faculty members included: Dr. Snehashish Bhattacharya (Faculty of Economics), Dr. Srinivas Burra (Faculty of Legal Studies), Dr. Irfanullah Farooqi (Faculty of Social Sciences), and Dr. Ravi Kumar (Faculty of Social Sciences). The teachers responded individually to the notice in January 2023. The university administration then created a superseding committee comprising deans of the university which recommended disagreeable actions that include expulsion, eviction, and rustication orders against students.

The four above-mentioned faculty members were given notice by this so-called ‘Fact Finding’ Committee for an interaction. During this interaction, they were asked to provide answers to 132 to 246 questions in writing by the end of the working day, using pen and paper and in presence of the committee members. They were denied electronic submission of these answers or any delay, and declining to answer any question, they were told, would be used against them as evidence. The questions, furthermore, included fresh and unsubstantiated allegations that were hitherto unknown to the faculties.

Such humiliation and insult to faculty members in the name of fact-finding is unheard of in academia, and when the faculty members asked for a longer period of time as they felt they needed legal counsel to answer these questions, they were suspended with immediate effect on 16 June 2023, stating “allegations of misconduct”. They were told to vacate their offices, return their office computers and identity cards, and register their attendance on all working days in the offices of their respective deans.

This chain of events demonstrates the lack of transparency and accountability prevalent in a leading higher education institution in our corner of the world. Such despotic practices can only breed in an already non-democratic environment, and we, who have been observing recent political trends in South Asia and, in particular, India, find it no surprise that this has happened. It moves us, however, to denounce such practices. These actions show that these officials and administrators have no concern for academic practices or integrity, and neither research nor teaching is their priority. We condemn their actions, and we would like to bring the attention of SAARC to this issue. No academic freedom is guaranteed when students, teachers and researchers can be subjected to such abhorrent malpractices.

In solidarity with the teachers, students and researchers of South Asian University against the ongoing oppression,

1. Kazi Farid, Professor, Rural Sociology, Bangladesh Agricultural University
2. Mohammad Tanzimuddin Khan, Professor, Department of International Relations, University of Dhaka
3. Md. Sazzad Hossain Zahid, Associate Professor, English, Islamic University, Kushtia
4. Fahmidul Haq, Visiting Professor, Division of the Arts, Bard College, USA
5. Priyanka Kundu, Lecturer, Department of Mass Communication and Journalism, Bangladesh University of Professionals
6. Mahbubul Haque Bhuiyan, Assistant Professor, Mass Communication and Journalism, Comilla University
7. Asif M Shahan, Associate Professor, Department of Development Studies, University of Dhaka
8. Meem Arafat Manab, Lecturer, School of Data and Sciences, BRAC University
9. Arafat Rahaman, Assistant Professor, International Relations, Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman Science and Technology University, Gopalganj
10. Rushad Faridi, Assistant Professor, Department of Economics, University of Dhaka
11. Ainoon Naher, Professor, Anthropology, Jahangirnagar University
12. Parvin Jolly, Professor, Department of History, Jahangirnagar University
13. Masood Imran Mannu, Professor, Department of Archaeology, Jahangirnagar University
14. Monira Shormin, Assistant Professor, Dept. of Journalism and Media Communication, Green University of Bangladesh
15. Mahmudul H Sumon, Professor, Anthropology, Jahangirnagar University
16. Nasir Ahmed, Professor, English, Jagannath University
17. Shamima Akter, Assistant Professor, Bangla, Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman Science and Technology University, Gopalgonj
18. Md Saimum Reza Talukder, Senior Lecturer, School of Law, BRAC University
19. Mirza Taslima Sultana, Professor, Department of Anthropology, Jahangirnagar University
20. Soumya Sarker, Assistant Professor, Department of English, Jagannath University
21. Kamal Chowdhury, Professor, Department of Clinical Psychology, University of Dhaka
22. Maidul Islam, Ph.D. candidate, Department of Sociology, Dietrich School of Arts and Sciences, University of Pittsburgh, & Associate Professor, Sociology, University of Chittagong
23. Nafisa Tanjeem, Associate Professor, Department of Interdisciplinary Studies, Worcester State University
24. Afsana Haque, Associate Professor, Urban and Regional Planning, Jahangirnagar University
25. Sayeed Ferdous, Professor, Anthropology, Jahangirnagar University
26. Arifuzzaman Rajib, Assistant professor, EEE, BSMRSTU
27. Tasmiha Tabassum Sadia, Lecturer, International Relations, Bangladesh University of Professionals
28. Anu Muhammad, Professor, Economics, Jahangirnagar University
29. Manosh Chowdhury, Professor, Department of Anthropology, Jahangirnagar University
30.  Samina Luthfa, Associate Professor, Department of Sociology, University of Dhaka
31. Sukanta Biswas, Assistant Professor, Department of English, Bangabandhu Sheikh MujiburRahman Science & Technology University, Gopalganj
32. Sumit Kumar Banshal, PhD, Assistant Professor, Computer science and Engineering, Alliance University, India
33. Dr. Ashraf Uddin, Assistant Professor, Department of Computer Science, American International University-Bangladesh
34. Ferdousi Begum, Assistant Professor, Department of Law, American International University Bangladesh (AIUB)
35. Mohammad Nurul Amin, Lecturer, Department of Law, Cox’s Bazar International University
36. Abdullah Al Arif, Sessional Lecturer, Macquarie Law School, Macquarie University
37. Golam Kaderye, Lecturer, CSE, The International University of Scholars
38. Imtiaz Ahmed Sajal, Lecturer, Law, Bangladesh Army International University of Science and Technology
39. Md Razidur Rahaman, Assistant Professor, Department of Law, Notre Dame University Bangladesh
40. Md Mostafa Hosain, Assistant Professor, School of Law, Brac University
41. Shah Md Tanvir Siddiquee, Assistant Professor, Computer Science and Engineering, Daffodil International University
42. Sanjana Hoque, Lecturer, School of Law, Chittagong Independent University
43. Shadika Haque Monia, Lecturer, Law, Notre Dame University Bangladesh
44. Bulbul Siddiqi, Associate Professor, Political Science and Sociology, North South University
45. Shamsul Arefin, Assistant Professor (on leave) and PhD Student, Sociology, Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman Science and Technology University, Gopalganj- Bangladesh and University of Massachusetts, Amherst
46. Asif Bin Ali, Lecturer, Department of Political Science and Sociology, North South University,Dhaka
47. Mohiuddin Md. Al-Amin, Assistant Professor, Department of Law, Northern University Bangladesh
48. Sabidin Ibrahim, Convener, BDSF, BANGLADESH STUDY FORUM
49. Kazi M. Anisul Islam, Assistant Professor, Mass Communication and Journalism, Comilla University, Cumilla, Bangladesh
50. Quazi Omar Foysal, Lecturer, Law, American International University-Bangladesh
51. MD Tofael Ahmed, Associate professor, Department of ICT, Comilla University
52. 52. Tahsin Khan, Assistant Professor, Law, Notre Dame University Bangladesh
53. M. Z. Ashraful, Associate Professor, Law and Justice, Metropolitan University
54. Partho Sarathi Sarker, Assistant professor, Department of computer science and engineering, University of Global Village, Barisal.
55. Mahmud Hasan Kayesh, Senior Lecturer in Film and Television, Department of Media and Communication, Independent University, Bangladesh (IUB)
56. Nazia Akther, Lecturer, Law, Cox’s Bazar International University
57. Md. Sohel Rana, Assistant Professor, Political Science, University of Barishal
58. Zobaida Nasreen, Professor, Department of Anthropology, University of Dhaka
59. Saeed Ahsan Khalid, Assistant Professor, Department of Law, University of Chittagong
60. Mamoon Al Rasheed, Associate Professor, Department of Computer Science & Engineering, The International University of Scholars, Bangladesh
61. Dilshad Hossain Dodul, Senior Lecturer, Department of Media Studies and Journalism, University of Liberal Arts Bangladesh
62. Syeda Sadia Mehjabin, Senior Lecturer, Media Studies and Journalism, University of Liberal Arts
63. Aroup Raton Shaha, Assistant Professor, Law, Cox’s Bazar International University
64. Md. Salim Hossain, Associate Professor, Psychology, University of Dhaka
65. Md. Bake Billah, Assistant Professor, Folklore, Jatiya Kabi Kazi Nazrul Islam University, Trishal 2224, Mymensingh
66. Md Nazmul Islam, Head of Türkiye, Asia and Indo-Pacific Studies (TAIPS) and Assistant Professor, Political Science and Public Administration, Ankara Yıldırım Beyazıt Üniversitesi
67. Kabya Krittika, Research Associate cum Lecturer, Center for Archaeological Studies, University of Liberal Arts
68. Towfique Elahi, Assistant Professor, Media and Journalism, North South University
69. Unmesh Roy, Assistant Professor, Bangla, University of Barisal
70. Snehadri Chakravarty, Lecturer, Department of Law, State University of Bangladesh
71. Nirnoy Islam, Lecturer, School of General Education, BRAC University
72. Shariful Islam, Assistant Professor, Media & Journalism, North South University
73. Moiyen Zalal Chowdhury, Assistant Professor, ESS, BRAC University
74. Ishita Ahmed, Assistant Professor (on study leave), Accounting and Information Systems, Jagannath University
75. Rashed Mosharref, Assistant Professor (on study leave), Public Administration, University of Barisal
76. Asif Ekbal Arif, Assistant Professor, Anthropology, Jatiya Kabi Kazi Nazrul Islam University
77. Farha Tanzim Titil, Assistant Professor, Department of Economics, Islamic University Bangladesh
78. Ovinu Kibria Islam, Associate Professor, Microbiology, Jashore University of Science and Technology
79. Sowmit Joydip, Assistant Professor, School of General Education, BRAC University, Dhaka, Bangladesh
80. Maruf Reza Byron, Associate Professor, Department of Business Administration, Daffodil International University
81. Oliur Rahman, Part Time Faculty, Department of English and Humanities, University of Liberal Arts Bangladesh