Two colleges in Koyra upazila of Khulna district are being run by acting principals following the resignation of one principal under alleged pressure and the prolonged absence of another after the 2024 mass uprising. The developments have raised concerns over the administration and academic environment of the institutions. Both former principals are pursuing legal action to regain their positions. At Kapotaksha College, former principal Adris Aditya Mondal alleges that he was forced to resign on August 15, 2024, following a protest by a group of people who accused him of irregularities and misappropriation of college funds.

According to Mondal, the protesters, who used the banner of the Anti-Discrimination Student Movement, searched for him at the college and later at his residence. He alleged that they subsequently found him at a local resident’s house, where he was verbally and physically harassed and threatened before being forced to sign a resignation letter. Members of the upazila administration, police and Navy later rescued him, he said. Mondal further alleged that he was pressured to write another resignation letter in his own hand after being taken back to the college. He said he eventually signed the letter, citing family reasons, out of concern for his own and his family’s safety.

Abdullah Al Galib, former member secretary of the Koyra Upazila unit of the Anti-Discrimination Student Movement, said the movement’s banner had been used by a group seeking to serve personal interests. The college’s acting principal, Maulana Oli Ullah, said Mondal had submitted his resignation to the managing committee president on August 15, 2024. He said the then-managing committee president and Upazila Nirbahi Officer (UNO) Md. Tariquzzaman subsequently appointed him acting principal at a meeting, based on his seniority.

At Khan Saheb Komar Uddin College, acting principal Anupam Kumar Baidya said former principal Chayan Kumar Roy had been absent since the mass uprising. The college’s managing committee later suspended Roy temporarily and appointed Baidya as acting principal. Managing committee president Ahmed Helali said allegations of recruitment irregularities and financial misconduct had previously been raised against Roy. He said Roy was suspended because of his prolonged absence and could resume his duties if he returned through the legal process.

Koyra UNO Md. Abdullah Al Baki confirmed that two college principals in the upazila had resigned in the aftermath of the mass uprising and were pursuing legal procedures to return to their positions. The circumstances surrounding the resignations and the allegations against the former principals could not be independently verified.