Kushtia Correspondent

A portion of teachers-employees of Islamic University (IU) in Kushtia illegally occupied 16 units of a newly constructed dormitory last year on 21 June and have not paid any rent and electricity bills since then which is estimated around Tk4.5 lakh.

According to university sources, in June 2022, the contractor handed over the newly constructed dormitory-2 building to the university engineering division. Some teachers and employees applied to the university authorities for accommodation but were denied. Enraged by this, they occupied 16 units on the fourth and fifth floors of the dormitory and remained there for over a year without facing any action from the administration.

The university engineers’ office said, “The teachers and employees have been using electricity of the building extensively unlawfully. They are not allocated officially, so the office can’t bill them. Despite notifying this issue to the authorities, no action has been taken, so far.”

The university estate office reported, “The illegal occupants have not paid any rent for a year. The monthly rent for these units is Tk1750, which accumulated around Tk3.36 lakh in a year excluding other utility bills. However, there has been no effort to collect rent or regularize the allocation of those units.”

An officer who occupied accommodation at the dormitory and was unwilling to be named said, “The university administration has not given any instructions regarding rent or electricity bills. We do not want to stay here illegally. The administration has not made any decision regarding this. If the administration allocates us elsewhere, we will vacate this dormitory.”

Estate Office Director Shamsul Islam Joha said, “Due to the role of various organisations, the administration has not taken any action in this matter. The University Vice-Chancellor has instructed the chief engineer and estate office to provide a list of those teachers and offices and we have submitted the list.”

University Pro-Vice Chancellor Professor Dr Mahbubur Rahman, convener of the accommodation committee, rejected the claims of the engineers and estate office and said, “He has never received any list from the engineers and estate office. He was not formally informed about who occupied the building. If they inform us officially, action will be taken over the matter.”