Classes have been suspended at Jhenaidah Government Keshab Chandra (KC) College following intense friction between student factions affiliated with the Bangladesh Jatiyatabadi Chhatra Dal (JCD) and Bangladesh Islami Chhatra Shibir. In response to the worsening atmosphere, the college administration has instituted an indefinite ban on all political activities across the campus.
The preventive measures were approved during an Academic Council meeting chaired by the college principal, Professor Masrur-ul-Alam. A formal statement signed by the principal confirmed that all educational activities would remain suspended to safeguard students, while all rallies, meetings, and political gatherings were banned indefinitely to avert any potential breakdown of law and order.
The unrest traces back to a social media dispute that erupted on the afternoon of 5 October. According to local sources and student representatives, a contentious Facebook post sparked heated arguments between supporters of the two political groups, quickly escalating into confrontational chases and counter-chases on campus. The confrontation subsequently spilled beyond the college gates, with both organisations staging rival demonstrations across Jhenaidah town.
Explaining the trigger behind the altercation, the President of the college’s JCD unit, Babar Ali Mahfuz, alleged that an activist linked to Chhatra Shibir had published derogatory remarks on Facebook targeting BNP Chairman Tarique Rahman and former Prime Minister Begum Khaleda Zia. Mahfuz stated that the situation deteriorated after JCD representatives requested the removal of the post, leading to an altercative standoff that nearly descended into full-blown violence.
Conversely, the President of the local Chhatra Shibir unit, Shahriar Mahbub Islam, noted that his organisation had scheduled a reception ceremony on campus for Thursday morning. Invitations had already been dispatched to guests before the confrontation occurred. However, following the college administration’s blanket ban on political events, the gathering could not proceed as planned.
Jhenaidah Government KC College, a premier public tertiary institution in the southwestern district of Bangladesh, routinely accommodates thousands of undergraduate and postgraduate students. Student politics in Bangladeshi public colleges has historically been a double-edged sword: whilst serving as a traditional platform for youth leadership, violent rivalries between opposing student wings frequently disrupt academic calendars, trigger unexpected campus closures, and stoke widespread security concerns among parents and faculty alike.
Efforts to obtain additional commentary from the college administration regarding the eventual resumption of academic proceedings were unsuccessful at the time of reporting.
