New CU BCL leaders against shuttle train based factions

The new president and general secretary of Chittagong University unit of Bangladesh Chhatra League (BCL) yesterday declared that they would not allow the student organisation's factionalism based on compartments of the university shuttle train.

There would be zero tolerance in this regard, they told a press conference at Chittagong Press Club.

There are at least 10 groups of BCL based on the shuttle train compartments, and these factions often got engaged in bloody clashes in the past.

The new president, Alamgir Tipu, also said if any BCL activist tarnished the image of the organisation through his misdeed, he would face stern action.

The CU unit of BCL had been dissolved since June 10 last year following a factional clash.

On July 20, BCL's central committee made Alamgir Tipu president of the CU unit and Fazly Rabby Sujan general secretary. No other posts were announced.

Appearing at their first press conference, the new CU leadership placed a 10-point demand to the university authorities including reducing session jams, increasing research facilities, adding more compartments to the shuttle train, and expanding accommodation facilities in the dormitories.

Reading out a written statement, Sujan said CU was supposed to be fully residential as per the 1973 university ordinance, so the authorities should work to achieve it.

CU has 24,000 students at present but only 4,278 reside in dormitories.

The new leaders demanded that the shuttle train should have 11-12 compartments instead of the existing 6-7.