Ward quota returns to CU following court ruling, one student admitted per department

Although Chittagong University (CU) had administratively decided to abolish the ward quota for the 2025-26 academic session, admissions under the quota have ultimately been allowed following a court ruling.

The university admitted one student under the quota in each department, despite no mention of the ward quota in the admission circular or the published merit lists.

According to university sources, the decision to scrap the ward quota was made at the second meeting of the university's admission test committee for the 2025-26 session.

A section of CU teachers, officers, and staff later filed a writ petition with the High Court seeking to retain the quota.

The court on February 25, 2026 ordered the university to implement a rule stating that the ward quota for offspring and spouses of university employees had long been recognised as an established benefit for first-year undergraduate admissions, which the court considered with due importance.

In a letter signed by 18 teachers and 84 officers and staff members on behalf of the Chittagong University Employees' Unity Council, it was stated that at the seventh meeting of the admission committee held on March 31, 2026, the university decided to implement the ward quota in compliance with the court order.

CU Registrar Prof Saiful Islam said, “The court asked us to maintain the long-standing practice. Although there was scope to admit 166 students under the quota, we limited it to 54, equivalent to the number admitted in the previous academic year."

CU Vice-Chancellor Prof Mohammad Al-Forkan acknowledged that the admission circular did not mention the ward quota, despite admissions being conducted under it.

Pro-Vice Chancellor (Academic) Prof Shamim Uddin said, "As all admission-related activities had already been completed before the verdict was delivered, it was not possible to include the quota in the admission circular. Later, an academic meeting decided to admit one student from each department under the quota.”