On Sunday, United International University (UIU) was suddenly shut down indefinitely. The announcement came late at night—around 10 pm—through a short message posted on the university's verified Facebook page by the registrar.

The closure followed growing unrest. On Saturday afternoon, a group of students began a hunger strike, demanding the resignation of the Vice-Chancellor. That night, protesting students staged a sit-in outside the VC's office. In a dramatic turn of events, Vice-Chancellor Professor Abul Kashem Mia and 12 other faculty members submitted their resignations the same night.

The UIU trustee board formed a three-member fact-finding committee on Monday to investigate the situation.

Under the Awami League government, clashes, student protests, and suppression on campuses had become almost routine—especially in public universities. However, such tensions were rare in private universities. After the public uprising on August 5 that led to the fall of the Awami League government, many hoped that peace would return to campuses and that education would finally return to normal. Students and education experts were also optimistic about improvements in education quality.

However, the current reality paints a different picture. Even though it's been almost nine months since the uprising, many universities are still far from returning to normal.

Due to ongoing protests and campus unrest, many students are still unable to continue their studies. In addition to public universities, several private universities have also become unstable.

A tragic example occurred on April 19. That afternoon, Zahidul Islam Parvez, a student of Textile Engineering at Prime Asia University, was stabbed to death on campus. According to reports, the attack involved fellow students as well as local youths and teenagers from the area. Parvez's cousin Humayun Kabir filed a case the next day, naming eight accused—including three students from the university's LLB and English departments: Mahathir, Meherab, and Abujar Gifari. The case also includes 20–30 unnamed individuals.

An analysis of reports from various universities and colleges over the past nine months shows a disturbing trend: at least 19 clashes, 9 protests, and 3 murders have taken place in educational institutions during this period.

One of the most tragic cases happened before Parvez's death. On September 18, Shamim Molla, a former student from the History Department of Jahangirnagar University (JU), was beaten to death by a mob. On the same night, around 10:30 pm, another young man named Tofazzal was also beaten and killed in Fazlul Huq Muslim Hall at Dhaka University after being suspected of theft by students.

Both cases are still under investigation. So far, one person has been arrested for Shamim Molla's murder, and six people have been arrested in connection with Tofazzal's killing.

Dr. Mohammad Ali Zinnah, a professor from Dhaka University Institute of Education and Research, explained the deeper issues behind this unrest. He said, "In recent years, administrative order in universities has broken down. Those in power used university administrations for their political purposes. As a result, ordinary students have lost trust in administrators and teachers."

He added, "Now, instead of relying on the administration, students often try to take matters into their own hands. On the other hand, students were at the heart of the major political change in the country. That has given them a sense of confidence. But in some cases, it has also made some students feel 'superior.' Unfortunately, it's often this group that is involved in mob justice and campus violence."

In the past nine months, students from a college in Dhaka and another nearby institution have clashed 13 times, often over minor disputes. In the current month, there have already been three fights or scuffles between students from these two colleges.

The most recent incident happened on April 21, when City College students beat up a student from Dhaka College in Dhanmondi. In response, students from Dhaka College launched a retaliatory attack the next day.

Other violent clashes have taken place between students from institutions such as Barishal University and BM College, three colleges in Jatrabari, Prime Asia University and police, Bangladesh University of Textiles (BUTEX) and Dhaka Polytechnic Institute, Khulna University of Engineering and Technology (KUET), and Chittagong College.

This wave of campus violence is spreading across both public and private institutions, raising serious concerns about safety and order in educational settings.

On February 18, a clash broke out at KUET (Khulna University of Engineering and Technology), which expelled 37 students on April 14. This sparked a wave of protests demanding the resignation of the university's Vice-Chancellor. The protesting students argued that the expulsions were unfair and accused the Vice-Chancellor of trying to favor the student political group, Chhatra Dal.

On April 21, 32 students began a hunger strike, demanding the Vice-Chancellor's resignation. Students from other public universities across the country showed their support by boycotting classes and exams, organizing protests, and even holding symbolic hunger strikes.

CR Abrar, the education adviser and a University Grants Commission (UGC) investigation committee, arrived at KUET on April 23 to address the situation. They listened to the students' concerns and requested they end their hunger strike. However, the students remained firm in their demands. As a result, on April 24, the government announced the removal of both the Vice-Chancellor and the Pro-Vice Chancellor of KUET.

Dr. Sajjad Siddiqui, acting chair of the Peace and Conflict Studies Department at Dhaka University, commented, "Post-independence Bangladesh has developed a negative political culture, which has caused division in society. Educational institutions reflect this divide, and one of the major causes of university clashes is this division. The lack of a strong disciplinary system in institutions makes it easy for students to engage in violence without facing consequences. Strong actions against those involved in such incidents could reduce their recurrence."

Besides the violence, campus protests have become another significant challenge over the past few months. In the last nine months, there have been nine major movements, including demands to cancel the remaining HSC exams, separate seven colleges into independent universities, convert Titumir College into a university, and demand the resignation of the Vice-Chancellor of KUET. For the past two weeks, students from Polytechnic Institutes have been protesting with six demands. They declared a nationwide shutdown of all polytechnic institutes to push for their goals.

This ongoing unrest highlights the growing concerns over student politics, governance, and student rights in educational institutions.

Professor Dr. SM Hafizur Rahman from the Institute of Education and Research believes that a proper investigation should be conducted to determine whether anyone is fueling the university protests and clashes. He said, "Several factors, such as students' mental state, moral standing, and the political and social environment, could play a role in these incidents. However, it's important to investigate whether anyone is intentionally trying to destabilize educational institutions."

In an overall statement, Professor Dr. SMA Faiz, Chairman of the University Grants Commission (UGC), told Bonik Barta, "A major problem in universities is the lack of trust between teachers and students. In recent years, students have faced various forms of oppression, which has led to a breakdown in the relationship between them and their teachers. To restore normalcy in the educational environment, we must first improve the teacher-student relationship. We are working on this."

He also mentioned that political factors are often the main cause behind student conflicts and emphasized that political parties need to play a responsible role in ending these clashes.