THE forced resignation of heads of educational institutions — often unseemly and, therefore, ignoble — keeps happening in breach of government directives. Against the backdrop of such happenings that began after the downfall of the authoritarian regime of the Awami League on August 5 amidst student-mass uprising, the education adviser to the interim government in a release on August 25 said that none could be forced to resign from any position in educational institutions and none could be subjected to personal humiliation. Such forced resignation, along with some voluntary resignation, began first with public universities. But it has since then started happening in colleges and schools. The Awami League government closed all educational institutions on July 17 after the student protests seeking reforms in civil service job reservations turned violent in the event of attacks on the protesters by ruling party people and law enforcement units. The interim government reopened all educational institutions on August 18, but academic and administrative activities could not be started because of forced resignation, on the one hand, and voluntary resignation consequent on change in the government, on the other hand. There might be hordes of valid reasons for the removal of heads of institutions, but the way this is happening is unacceptable.
Some Bangladesh Open University students on September 2 locked up the main entrance and some other offices, demanding that the treasurer and all the deans should resign. The vice-chancellor and two pro-vice-chancellors have already resigned after the student protests. About 20 students confined the Tejgaon Girls’ College principal to his office on the day, demanding his resignation on allegations of high tuition fees for poor services. The principal fell ill. In a similar incident, the principal of the Naogaon Hapania High School and College fell ill in Naogaon on August 28. Naogaon sadar upazila secondary education officer on September 2 said that the headteacher of the Kirtipur High School was forced to resign in the past week. The Bangladesh College Teachers’ Association, which says that it was hearing of such incidents taking place across the country almost every day, on August 31 expressed concern at such harassment and forced resignation. Allegations have it that vested interests opposed to current heads in many institutions are instigating students against the heads. The education ministry should, therefore, take early steps against such forced resignation of heads of educational institutions. The government should realise that many who became heads of educational institutions during the Awami League regime may well be very good administrators or teachers and need to be retained. If there are allegations against any such heads of their complicity in the now-deposed Awami League or corruption and irregularities, there should be an official grievance mitigation mechanism by way of which complaints could be lodged so that the government may make decisions on proper, impartial examinations of the allegations.
The interim government is expected to look into such issues with the required earnestness and take early steps to put the institutions back in order.