Colleagues start six-day strike

Buet Teachers Association started their six-day work abstention yesterday protesting an assault on a colleague by ruling Awami League backed Bangladesh Chhatra League (BCL) men, who, on the other hand, demanded that he be sacked for posting "provocative" comments on Facebook on the execution of war criminal Kamaruzzaman.

Prof Jahangir Alam of civil engineering department told The Daily Star that Shuvro and Konok, president, and general secretary of BCL's Bangladesh University of Engineering and Technology (Buet) unit, led the attack on Sunday. Leading some 18 BCL activists, they also vandalised his office and forcibly took him to the vice-chancellor's office, he said.

Shuvro denied the assault allegation. At a human chain formed in Buet, he demanded legal steps against Prof Jahangir, and also urged teachers to resume classes.

In a statement, Buet Teachers Association also demanded that criminal charges be brought against the BCL men and that they would decide in an emergency meeting on April 19 whether to go for continuous work abstention.