Md Nahid Islam, the Adviser for Posts, Telecommunications and Information Technology, as well as Information and Broadcasting, pledged on Monday to meet all demands of Jagannath University (JnU) students, including handing over the Keraniganj second campus project to the army.
He made this commitment while addressing students gathered outside the Secretariat.
Nahid Islam stated, “These are logical demands. It is inconceivable for a university not to have its own campus or residential halls. We are committed to addressing these issues swiftly, and students’ demands will be met soon.”
Expressing empathy for the students' struggles, he noted, “I am aware that JnU students endure significant hardships. A member of my own family studies at the university, and I fully support their justified demands for residential facilities.”
He added, “The reality is that we cannot complete the halls within three days. However, we can hand the project over to the army. We need to sit down to finalize this process, and in three days, we will transfer the second campus project to the army.”
In response to reports of student mistreatment by officials within the Secretariat, Nahid Islam stated, “The officials who disrespected students will apologize, and action will be taken against them.”
Earlier, university students had staged a sit-in outside the Secretariat, pressing for a five-point demand that includes the transfer of the Keraniganj campus project to the army and the inclusion of the university in the UGC’s pilot project.
The students' demands include: holding the project director, accused of corruption and appointed during an autocratic regime, accountable under the law; appointing a competent army officer as project director within seven days; an official declaration from the Ministry of Education confirming the handover of the second campus project to the army, with a clear outline of the handover process prioritizing residential facilities; the immediate acquisition of the remaining 11 acres of land; and the cancellation of all unethical agreements made concerning the old campus during the autocratic regime.