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DU teacher’s fight for reinstatement


Published : 28 Nov 2019 09:09 PM | Updated : 06 Sep 2020 06:19 PM

A Dhaka University economics department teacher, sent on forced leave in 2017, has been demanding reinstatement in class by staging a sit-in in front of the department chairman’s room for the fourth straight day. The image of the assistant professor, Rushad Faridi, holding a placard that reads “I am a teacher, let me go back to the classroom,” went viral on social media platforms.

Faridi was sent on forced leave on July 13, 2017, following a syndicate meeting chaired by the former vice-chancellor AAMS Arefin Siddique. But he was not issued any “show-cause” notice then. The decision was made after a number of teachers of his department refused to work with him. But the reason behind the step against the teacher could not be known immediately.

Rushad Faridi claimed that he was sent to forced leave on a ‘baseless and false,’ allegation. He said that he had always been outspoken about irregularities inside the department and fell victim to personal grudges of some teachers’ as he was an outspoken critic of irregularities in the department, he claimed adding that he had sent seven letters to the department chairman regarding the issue.

The DU teacher also sent a legal notice to five people including then VC Arefin Siddique demanding reconsideration of the decision, but with no response, he added. On July 24, 2017 the High Court questioned the legality of the syndicate’s decision to send Rushad Faridi on forced leave.

The court then issued a rule asking the authorities concerned of DU to explain within two weeks why the syndicate’s decision to send Rushad Faridi on forced leave should not be declared illegal. After two years on August 25 this year, the High Court declared the syndicate’s decision illegal and ordered the DU authorities to allow Rushad Faridi to join his office.

The HC bench of Justice JBM Hassan and Justice Md Khairul Alam came up with the verdict following a writ petition filed by Rushd Faridi challenging the legality of DU syndicate’s decision to send him to forced leave. Rushad Faridi said he is yet to receive the certified copy of the verdict but he submitted his lawyers’ signed copy to both the department and the university.
He also alleged that department chairman professor Shafique uz Zaman refused to receive his letter and also misbehaved with him thus he could not join the department.

Denying the allegation, Shafique uz Zaman said, they had nothing to do with this as there was a legal dispute between the university and RushadFaridi and also it is a sub-judice matter as they are yet to get the full verdict of the court. Acknowledging the matter, University VC Professor Akhtaruzzaman told Bangladesh Post that he was concerned about it, and they have to decide following legal procedure.