Dr Anindita Dutta, an associate professor at Bangladesh Medical University (formerly BSMMU), found herself barricaded in her office for six hours on Sunday, March 16.
Trapped in the Cancer Building’s F Block by a group of agitators, she was eventually freed and sent home under army escort, with assistance from university officials and police.
Daughter of former MP and ex-Vice-Chancellor Professor Pran Gopal Dutta, Dr Anindita serves in the Radiology and Imaging Department. The standoff, which began shortly after she arrived at 8:00am, stemmed from political rivalries tied to her father’s past in Cumilla.
University Registrar Professor Md. Nazrul Islam, also from Radiology and Imaging, told Jago News: “This was a political matter from their constituency—no university staff were involved. A Hindu rival from Cumilla led a team here, roped in locals, and blocked her.”
He hinted at broader unrest: “Some are stirring trouble—it’s happening everywhere now.”
Response was swift. After the university alerted authorities, a proctorial team rushed to the scene, joined by an army unit from Segunbagicha led by a captain and a police squad from Shahbagh police sation under its second officer.
By 2:30pm, Dr Anindita was escorted home to Dhanmondi in an army convoy.
Dr Pran Gopal Dutta helmed BSMMU from 2009 to 2015 and won Cumilla-7’s parliamentary seat unopposed in a 2021 by-election.
After the government shifted on August 5 last year, multiple cases emerged against him in Dhaka and Cumilla, naming Anindita as a co-accused.
Sources suggest the blockade was orchestrated by Cumilla foes demanding her arrest over those charges.