The authorities of Rajshahi University announced Thursday night the abolition of the ward quota for teachers, officials, and employees in undergraduate admissions, following a day-long student protest.
‘There will be no quota facility for university teachers, officials, and employees in undergraduate admissions for the 2024-25 academic year. I am committed to taking all necessary steps to ensure the complete abolition of the ward quota through due process,’ said RU vice-chancellor professor Saleh Hasan Naqib after a meeting with the protesting students.
The decision came about 12 hours after students locked the main administration building, confining university officials, including pro-vice-chancellors professor Mohammad Main Uddin and professor Farid Uddin Khan, inside.
On Wednesday, during an emergency meeting, the university’s admission committee had decided to cancel the quota for teachers and officials but retained a 1 per cent quota for the children of Class-III and Class-IV employees.
Unhappy with the partial abolition, students staged a protest in front of the administration building Thursday morning, demanding the removal of all quotas. At 10:00am, they began a sit-in, locking the main entrance and preventing officials from leaving the building until their demands were addressed.