The Dhaka University authorities on Wednesday removed the name of deceased activist Sharif Osman Hadi from the front gate of a dormitory and replaced it with its previous name, Sheikh Mujibur Rahman Hall.Md Joban Ali, a senior administrative officer of the hall, told The Financial Post that the decision was made following a ‘demand from students.’
The authorities removed the name ‘Shaheed Osman Hadi Hall’ from the hall gate around 2:00pm.
Abdullah Al Noman, joint convener of the Jatiyatabadi Chhatra Dal hall unit and outdoor sports secretary of the hall unit students union, said they supported the move to avoid confusion.
‘People coming to the hall often got confused with its name,’ he said.
Five members of the Dhaka University Central Students' Union walked out of the university's Senate session on June 29 after it failed to reach a final decision on renaming five structures named after members of the Sheikh family, including the hall.
At the end of the meeting, vice-chancellor ABM Obaidul Islam announced that the proposal would be sent back to the Syndicate.
The student representatives, including DUCSU vice-president Shadik Kayem, general secretary SM Farhad and assistant general secretary Muhammad Mahiuddin, walked out in protest.
Earlier, leaders of the hall union had demanded that Dhaka University's Sheikh Mujibur Rahman Hall be renamed Shaheed Osman Hadi Hall.
At around 2:30am on December 19 last year, they hung a banner reading ‘Shaheed Osman Hadi Hall’ at the hall gate.
Hall union general secretary Al Sabah later told the media that they had collected signatures from hall students and that a majority of the students had voted in favour of the demand.
FP/R 
