Professor Sheikh Hafizur Rahman Karzon of the law department at Dhaka University has been appointed the director of the Centre for Genocide Studies at the same university, replacing Professor Imtiaz Ahmed of the international relations department.
DU vice-chancellor Professor Md Akhtaruzzaman made the appointment on Tuesday, according to a press release signed by university public relations office director Mahmood Alam in the wake of protests against Professor Imtiaz for allegedly distorting the Liberation War history.
However, Professor Imtiaz said, he went on the post retirement leave on April 6.
‘I, therefore, wrote to the authorities concerned twice and asked them to give someone in my place. This is why a new director has been appointed. There is nothing more,’ he said.
Earlier, various groups demanded action against Professor Imtiaz accusing him of ‘distorting’ the history of the Liberation War in his book titled ‘Historicizing 1971 Genocide: State Versus Person’.
On April 2, Bangladesh Muktijoddha Mancha, a pro-Awami League platform, held a human chain and gave a memorandum to the Dhaka University vice-chancellor, demanding the removal of Professor Imtiaz accusing him of distorting the history about the country’s founding president Sheikh Mujibur Rahman and the War of Independence.
On April 6, the Bangladesh Chhatra League Dhaka University unit met the vice-chancellor and handed over a memorandum to him demanding action against Professor Imtiaz.
Besides, on April 7, the pro-AL DU Teachers’ Association also issued a statement demanding an immediate removal of Professor Imtiaz from the post of Centre for Genocide Studies director and the formation of an inquiry committee, consisting of expert teachers on the Liberation War and the history of Bangladesh, by the DU syndicate to investigate the distortion of the war history.
The DUTA also demanded that the government take legal action against the book.
