Four individuals, including two outsiders and a Jatiyatabadi Chhatra Dal activist, were arrested while preparing to consume cannabis on the rooftop of Sheikh Mujibur Rahman Hall (proposed Shaheed Osman Hadi Hall) at Dhaka University (DU) in the early hours of Friday, January 16.
Among the arrested, two are DU students—Abdullah Al Noman, a 2019–20 batch student of the Institue of Social Welfare and Research, and Tanbin Ahmed alias Ahmed Anim, a 2023–24 batch student of the Economics department student. Tanbin Ahmed is an activist of Bijay Ekattor Hall unit Chhatra Dal.
The outsiders were identified as Samiul and Rakib.
Campus sources said that a group of students, led by hall parliament VP Muslimur Rahman and AGS Mushfiq Tajwar Mahi, went to the rooftop around 2:00 am following reports of drug use and found them of taking preparation to consume cannabis.
Being informed, the DU proctorial team went to the scene and detained the individuals. Tobacco leaves, cannabis, and a smoking device were recovered from their possessions.
Samiul told reporters that he and Rakib had come to Dhanmondi for work and later visited the hall. “I wasn’t feeling well, so we went up to the rooftop,” he said.
Tanbin Ahmed initially denied possessing the drugs but later admitted it when confronted.
Ripon, a member of DU’s proctorial team, said outsiders are usually handed over to the police, while students are dealt with according to university regulations.
“No final decision has been made yet in this connection,” he added.
DU Proctor Professor Saifuddin Ahmed said that appropriate action would be taken against the students in accordance with university rules.