Chattogram City Corporation (CCC) Mayor, Dr Shahadat Hossain, has said Premier University, which was established with CCC’s funds and land, will now be managed under the authority of the City Corporation.
He made the statement today at a meeting with a committee formed by the Local Government Division at Chittagong’s Tigerpass, where the current situation of the private-run university was discussed.
The announcement follows student protests on 6 December, leading to the resignation of the university’s vice-chancellor, pro-vice-chancellor, treasurer, proctor, and director of Student Welfare and HR. This created administrative challenges due to the vacant positions.
Mayor Shahadat said, “Premier University was built with Chattogram City Corporation’s funds and land, purchased with Tk47 crore in 2003. Therefore, it is the property of CCC and the people of Chattogram. To ensure a quality educational experience for students, the university will now be managed under CCC’s authority.”
“However, the university was taken over through fraudulent means. Legal action has been taken to reclaim control, and we have informed the Ministry of Education, UGC Chairman, and consulted with legal experts. Premier University will return to CCC through legal procedures, and measures will be taken to prevent future illegal takeovers,” he said.
Earlier on 3 September, TBS published a story titled “How Ctg City Corp lost control of Premier University to Mohiuddin family”, detailing how the family of former Ctg mayor the late ABM Mohiuddin has taken control of the university.
The report highlighted that for 13 years, two city mayors, including Mohiuddin, served as chairmen of the university’s Board of Trustees. However, in 2016, Mohiuddin, despite no longer being mayor, used his political influence to control the university with his family. Despite court rulings, his family continued to operate the university as a personal asset.
In the meeting, Chattogram City Corporation’s CEO, Sheikh Muhammad Touhidul Islam, noted, “CCC had managed Premier University until 2015, after which it was forcefully taken over. We have petitioned the government, and the mayor has already informed the Ministry of Education and other authorities. The property will soon return to CCC.”
Chattogram City Corporation’s legal officer, Mohiuddin Murad, said in the meeting, “I have reviewed the legal documents, and the law states that the university is supposed to operate under a trust. But, essentially, it is controlled by an authority. There are two cases regarding Premier University in the High Court, mainly challenging various letters from the UGC. No case regarding ownership has been filed in the High Court. This is a matter of greater authority. After a private university is established, the initial investment of five crore taka and the land are provided by Chattogram City Corporation. We purchased the land in 2003. The first FD of TK50 lakh was also ours. We have documents confirming all of this.”
The meeting was attended by Chattogram City Corporation’s Secretary Mohammad Ashraful Amin, along with department and branch heads of the Corporation, Director of Health for Chattogram Division Ong Sui Pru Marma, DC (Traffic-North) Zainul Abedin, Deputy Managing Director of WASA Bishnu Kumar Sarker, and Chief Engineer (Civil) of Chattogram Port Authority Mahmudul Hossain Khan were also present.
Additionally, the meeting included Chief General Manager of BTCL Pradeep Das, Superintending Engineers from the Public Works Department Muhammad Ashif Imroz and Roads and Highways Department Mohammad Zahed Hossain, Deputy Assistant Director of Fire Service and Civil Defense Mohammad Abdul Mannan, Senior Assistant Commissioner S M N Jamiyul Hikma, executive engineer of Chattogram Development Authority Ahmad Moinuddin, and Assistant Director of the Environment Department Saiful Islam along with some representatives from various other government organizations in the city were also present.
The committee members unanimously supported the proposal to bring Premier University under the control of Chattogram City Corporation.
