Ensure due process, avoid ‘witch-hunts’ over alleged July roles: University Teachers' Network

The University Teachers’ Network, Dhaka University, today urged the university authorities to ensure due process in taking action against teachers over their alleged roles in the July uprising, warning against blanket measures and a culture of "witch-hunt".

In a statement, the platform expressed concern over disciplinary measures taken against seven teachers and an investigation involving a list of 231 faculty members.

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The statement came after the Dhaka University Syndicate, on July 28, temporarily suspended three teachers and relieved four others of all academic and administrative responsibilities.

According to the network, a section of teachers prepared a list of 231 faculty members in the name of opposing fascism and submitted it to the vice-chancellor, seeking action against all those named.

It said the university administration subsequently formed a committee to investigate the teachers on the list, although no punitive action had so far been taken solely on that basis.

The network said it did not oppose accountability for teachers who had incited or directed violence against students, enabled repression in residential halls, filed harassing complaints against colleagues, or actively opposed students' legitimate movements.

"However, accountability must be ensured through established legal processes and natural justice, not through vengeance or an ideological purge," the statement said.

The platform alleged that both the disciplinary process and the investigation lacked transparency and violated due process.

It said the seven teachers had claimed that decisions were taken before the allegations against them had been proven and without giving them an opportunity to defend themselves.

Citing the Dhaka University Order, 1973, the network said teachers had the right to hold political views and associate with lawful organisations, and that political opinion, identity or support alone cannot constitute an offence.

The network added that no individual could be deprived of their livelihood merely for holding or expressing an objectionable opinion unless they had taken specific steps to translate that view into violence or other harmful acts.

The platform also criticised the circulation of unproven allegations in the media and the university's decision to review alleged irregularities in faculty recruitment between January 1, 2009, and June 2024.

It warned that blanket investigations and the public circulation of allegations before they were proven could institutionalise a culture of "witch hunting" and revive fear on campus.

"Such retaliatory behaviour towards colleagues simply for holding different views reminds us of the power-hungry Awami fascist teachers," the statement added.

The network recalled that it had previously protested the dismissal of a teacher without a proper tribunal merely for writing an opinion article.

It urged the university administration to act only on specific written complaints, conduct impartial and credible investigations, formally inform accused teachers of the allegations against them, and provide them with full opportunities to defend themselves.

The platform also called for evidence-based decisions as well as the immediate review and withdrawal of blanket measures based solely on political identity or inclusion on a list.

"Universities are not places for vengeance or ideological purges. They are spaces for free inquiry and open debate," the statement said.