Govt appoints VCs at 7 univs, new UGC chief

The government has appointed new vice-chancellors to seven universities, including Dhaka University, Rajshahi University, and Jagannath University, and named a new chairman of the University Grants Commission (UGC).

Education Minister Ehsanul Hoque Milon announced the decisions at a press conference at the ministry yesterday.

Involvement in politics does not disqualify a [vice chancellor] candidate. Is it a crime if a person is involved in politics?

Ehsanul Hoque Milon, education minister

All the new appointees have past or current links with BNP-aligned teachers’ organisations, including Sada Dal, Zia Parishad and Jatiyatabadi Shikkhak Forum, while some hold positions in BNP bodies.

Mamun Ahmed, pro-vice-chancellor of Dhaka University, has been appointed chairman of the UGC.

Prof Mamun, a teacher of the Biochemistry and Molecular Biology Department at DU, was associated with Sada Dal and contested the 2022 DU Senate election from its panel.

He is also a member of the advisory council to the BNP chairperson and previously served as president of the Jatiyatabadi Samajik-Sanskritik Sangstha, a BNP-affiliated socio-cultural body.

Earlier yesterday, the incumbent UGC chairman SMA Faiz, appointed on September 5, 2024, sought to be relieved from his post citing health reasons.

The government has appointed ABM Obaidul Islam, current vice-chancellor of Bangladesh Open University and a professor of physics at DU, as the next VC of Dhaka University.

Obaidul Islam previously served as convener of DU Sada Dal and currently holds the post of education affairs secretary of the BNP central committee.

He is also president of the University Teachers’ Association of Bangladesh, aligned with the BNP bloc.

Mohammad Faridul Islam, a professor of the marketing department at Rajshahi University, has been appointed VC of RU. He currently serves as general secretary of Zia Parishad at the university.

At Jagannath University, Prof Rais Uddin, chairman of the Islamic Studies Department, has been appointed VC. He is president of the Jagannath University Teachers’ Association and general secretary of Sada Dal -- the pro-BNP teachers’ alliance -- at the university.

Following Obaidul’s appointment, Mohammad Siddiqur Rahman Khan has been selected as VC of Bangladesh Open University. He was also associated with DU Sada Dal.

Meanwhile, Mohammad Nurul Islam, pro-VC of National University of Bangladesh, has been appointed VC of Dhaka Central University, a newly established institution formed by integrating seven colleges in the capital.

He previously served as general secretary of Jatiyatabadi Shikkhak Forum, a pro-BNP teachers’ organisation, at Jahangirnagar University.

Prof Mohammad Al Forkan, founding chairman of Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology Department at Chittagong University, has been appointed VC of the university. He currently serves as senior vice-president of the Chittagong University Jatiyatabadi Teachers’ Forum.

In addition, Prof Mohammad Masud has been appointed VC of Khulna University of Engineering and Technology. He was earlier appointed KUET VC following the July uprising but was removed from the post in April last year amid student protests.

Asked whether political affiliations influenced the appointments, Milon said involvement in politics does not disqualify a candidate.

“Is it a crime if a person is involved in politics?” he said.

He said the government reviewed candidates’ research output, publications, citations, academic qualifications, PhD and post-doctoral work before making the appointments.

An investigation by this newspaper in December 2024 found that during the interim government, at least 30 of 47 vice-chancellors and 18 pro-vice-chancellors and treasurers appointed across 40 positions had links to pro-BNP and pro-Jamaat teachers’ organisations.

With the latest eight appointments, the newly formed BNP-led government has also selected academics with similar affiliations.