Abrar Murder Educationists blame culture of impunity

Eminent educationists said Wednesday that BUET student Abrar Fahad Rabbi became a victim of murder due to rotten politics.

They termed the murder in cold blood as an example of ‘inhuman and limitless cruelty’. 

The present situation at universities across the country reflects the pervasive dominance of the ruling party, social intolerance, hooliganism, barbarism, the lack of accountability and human qualities, they said.

Abrar was beaten to death on Monday by members of the BUET unit of Chhatra League for his Facebook status.

On Monday 10 BCL leaders and activists were arrested and on Tuesday the police took them in remand for five days for interrogations.

Professor emeritus Serajul Islam Choudhury told New Age that Abrar’s murder was not an isolated incident.

‘Due to pervasive dominance of the ruling party  democracy is not functioning, elections are not held and activists of Chhatra League, Juba League and Sechchha Shebok League are indulging in corruption,’ he said.

‘For the current situation on the universities the university administrations are responsible, he said as they are appointed by the government,’ he said.

‘And the teacher’s associations became the supporters of the ruling party,’ he said.

He said that as there was no elected student unions, democratic and cultural pursuits did not grow on the campuses in last 28 years, the obvious result of which was the current situation.

‘There has been no dissenting voice on the campuses for the last 12 years as the space for dissent vanished gradually,’ he said. 

Serajul Islam Choudhury said, ‘the culture of accountability in the national politics is absent.’

‘The boys who killed Abrar thought they would face no consequences,’ he said.

‘Abrar committed no crime for expressing his views, and if a university student could not express their views our country would not be able to be independent,’ he said.

He said that the university dormitories were supposed to be the safest places and no parent would ever imagine that their children would be murdered in dorms.

He demanded annual election of student unions on campus in which students should be able to vote without any fear. 

Former DU VC professor SMA Faiz said that responsibility lies not only on the political parties but also equally on the university administrations, the teachers and the civil society for situations like what happened at BUET.

Faiz said that the demand for banning student politics should be considered with an open mind and due respect.

‘I would say, the students admitted on merit, might support a political ideology which should not be reflected in their academic pursuits,’ he said.

Faiz also said that the political parties have greater responsibilities to improve the academic atmosphere on the campuses, but the teachers involved in the university administrations cannot overlook their responsibilities.

DU former professor Abul Kasem Fazlul Haque told New Age that differences in opinion in the society were normal, but hooliganism and killings were not all acceptable.

Holding politics fully responsible for what are happening now, he said, that it’s totally wrong to think trial and punishments would improve the situation.

Until and unless politics improves, he said, nothing would improve.

‘We have not yet got justice for the murder of journalist couple Sagar-Runi as well as of Avijit Roy,’ he said.

He recalled student murders of February 21, 1952 shook the nation on the following day as students of high schools took to the streets in protest.

Now, he said, murder was taking place one after another without protest. 

‘I am shocked and petrified over the murder of Abrar, if my son was murdered like this I would demolish and set fire to everything,’ said Mosammat Kulsum Akhatun, mother of BUET student and BCL activist Ishtiaq Hasan Munna, one of the accused in the Abrar murder case.

She claimed that her son was not present at the spot when Abrar was murdered.

Kulsum said that Munna’s father died 11 years ago and that she struggled to raise him and three other children.

She said that Munna became involved with politics after he took admission in BUET.

‘Before that he was never involved with politics,’ she said, adding, ‘he told me three or four years ago for staying at hall I must be associated with politics.’

‘I saw the others’ faces in the CCTV footage and they had no human feeling,’ she said and added that if she knew them earlier she would request Munna to stay away from them.

‘At the root is the capitalist culture of loot and plunder,’ said former DU psychology professor Azizur Rahman.

Children are growing witnessing their elders getting away with murders, rapes, extortions,    hooliganism and all sorts of law violatioins.

‘Abrar’s murder reflects limitless cruelty. We have to think why the society became so cruel,’ he said.

He said that it was not possible for the parents to ensure their children’s security.

 DU sociology department professor Monirul Islam Khan said that the society was like the human body if any organ gets sick then the sickness would affect the whole body.

He said aggressive culture in national politics and lack of accommodation and tolerance created the prevailing situation.

News Courtesy: www.newagebd.net