Former donor member locks school over “failure to give daughter-in-law job” - Prothom Alo English

A former donor member of the management committee of a school in Puthia, Rajshahi, has planted banana trees on the school field and locked the teachers’ officeProthom AloA former donor member of the management committee of a school in Puthia, Rajshahi, has planted banana trees on the school field and locked the teachers’ office.

He also fenced off the school’s main entrance with bamboo. He said he took these steps because the school did not give his daughter-in-law a job and changed its name. However, the headteacher said the school had given his daughter-in-law a job.

The school is named Bhalukgachi Muktijoddha School. When it was established in 2015, it was called Muktijoddha Technical School and College.

On Saturday, the weekly holiday, former donor member of the management committee Azad Ali brought several people to the school, planted banana trees on the field and put another padlock on the lock attached to the teachers’ office.

According to school sources, when the school was established, the plan was to teach students from pre-primary to secondary and higher secondary levels.

However, the institution did not have permission to provide higher secondary education. It only offered primary education. Following the political changeover on 5 August, the Rajshahi Education Board sent a letter seeking a change to the institution’s name.

The school management committee then held a meeting and named it “Bhalukgachi Muktijoddha School”. The resolution states that Azad Ali, who was then a donor member, himself proposed the name.

Former donor member of the management committee Azad Ali brought several people to the school, planted banana trees on the field and put another padlock on the lock attached to the teachers’ officeProthom AloOn 11 December 2024, the institution received permission to provide lower secondary education up to class eight. However, it has not been brought under the MPO scheme.

Students currently study at the primary level and in classes six and seven. As students progress to higher classes, the institution will have to obtain approval for secondary and higher secondary education.

Meanwhile, on Saturday, Azad Ali brought several people to the school and put another lock on the lock attached to the teachers’ office. He also fenced off the main entrance with bamboo and planted banana trees on the field.

Local shopkeeper Lal Mohammad told Prothom Alo, “There used to be many students at the school. Their number has fallen because of the lawsuit. Classes are still held, though. Today, Azad Ali suddenly came and fenced off the school in this way. As a result, we cannot even collect water from the school’s tube well.”

When asked about the matter, Azad Ali told Prothom Alo that he had been a donor member of the institution.

Former donor member of the management committee also fenced off the school’s main entrance with bambooProthom AloHe said, “They promised to establish a technical college there and give jobs to my son and daughter-in-law. But they did not establish any institution like a technical college. They did not give my daughter-in-law a job either. That is why I locked the school and planted banana trees.”

Headteacher Selim Reza said, “Azad Ali donated the land to the institution unconditionally. He gave an undertaking on a Tk 300 stamp paper and asked us to start the institution’s activities. After constructing the buildings, when he went to register the land in the institution’s name, he demanded jobs for his son in the vocational section and his daughter-in-law in the college section. The committee had no choice but to agree and registered the land.”

The headteacher further said, “As it took time to formally launch the college section, Azad Ali arranged for his daughter-in-law to join the primary section as an assistant teacher. She died in 2022 while still employed. He then arranged a second marriage for his son and asked the committee to give his son’s new wife a job as a clerk in the secondary section. The committee agreed to that as well.

There is a proper resolution on this matter too. About a year later, on 16 September 2025, he filed a case at a court in Rajshahi. He claimed that the institution had not been established under the name for which he had donated the land. The case is still pending. In this situation, he has locked the institution and planted banana trees on the field.”

Mohammad Touhidul Islam, president of the school’s managing committee and general secretary of Bhalukgachi Union BNP, told Prothom Alo, “An institution does not become established in a day. The donor member’s claim is not correct. The institution has students and classes are being held regularly. The Rajshahi Education Board approved the new managing committee on the 10th of last month.”

When contacted, Upazila Nirbahi Officer (UNO) Liaquat Salman told Prothom Alo that he was aware of the matter.

He said he was in Dhaka and would return on Sunday and take steps to reopen the institution. “Whatever may have happened in the past, no one can shut down an institution if it has students,” he said.