KUET Dismisses Hindu Faculty and Staff Over Alleged Misconduct
Dhaka, October 30: The sacking of seven employees at Khulna University of Engineering and Technology (KUET) has drawn attention to the situation of minorities in Bangladesh. The university dismissed three Hindu teachers and two other Hindu employees, along with two additional staff members, citing alleged indiscipline and other irregularities. Local media reported the decision on Friday.
KUET Registrar Engineer Anisur Rahman Bhuiyan confirmed that the university's 115th committee meeting approved the dismissals.
The list of those removed includes Professor Pintu Chandra Shil of Computer Science and Engineering, Professor Subrata Talpatra of Industrial Engineering and Management, and Assistant Professor Nibir Mondal of Energy Science and Engineering. Deputy Registrar Nimai Chandra Mistry and Office Assistant Satyajit Kumar Datta were also among those dismissed, according to the Dhaka Tribune.
The development coincides with rising concern over attacks on Hindus and other minority groups in Bangladesh.
Local reports this week also described a fatal stabbing of a Hindu man and a separate episode in which three Hindu family homes were attacked and looted.
Rabindra Rishi, 43, who owned a salon, was stabbed to death on Tuesday evening in Bhaluka upazila of Mymensingh district. The killing followed his refusal to cut a man's hair on credit. According to police information cited by Prothom Alo, the suspect, 26-year-old Saddam, struck Rabindra in the chest and neck with a sharp knife.
Saddam has been arrested. Mohammad Jahidul Islam, Officer-in-Charge of Bhaluka Model Police Station, described the suspect as behaving like a madman, and police have sought five days of remand to question him. The body was handed over to the family after a postmortem.
In Chak Karimpur village under Pirganj upazila of Rangpur district, three homes belonging to Hindu families were vandalised and looted on Monday night. Police told local media the incident followed a social media post that allegedly insulted Muslim religious sentiments.
The homes belonged to brothers Bishu Chandra Mohanta, 50, Jagadish Chandra Mohanta, 60, and Dinesh Chandra Mohanta, 46. Bishu told The Daily Star that attackers destroyed his television, furniture, walls and doors and stole two goats. Jagadish and Dinesh said their homes were also damaged and valuables taken.
Jagadish's wife, Aarti Rani, said she escaped the house during the assault. She said the family begged the attackers to stop, but she received death threats.
The Awami League condemned the attacks on Hindu families in Rangpur and said minorities have faced ongoing insecurity since August 2024. It stated that allegations of religious insult cannot justify mob violence, looting, intimidation or collective punishment, and that every accused person is entitled to fair legal process while every victim must receive equal protection under the law.