After five-year lien, DU professor seeks four more years to serve as ULAB VC

Dhaka University (DU) Professor Dr Samsad Mortuza has already spent five years on lien leave while serving at the University of Liberal Arts Bangladesh (ULAB). The university is now considering granting him another four years of leave to serve as ULAB’s vice-chancellor.

The matter is expected to be discussed at a DU Syndicate meeting in connection with leave from February 22, 2026, for four years. University officials said cases of a teacher taking such leave twice are rare, while DU Registrar Munshi Shams Uddin Ahmed said there is no provision for taking lien leave beyond five years.

Mortuza, a professor in DU’s Department of English, previously took five years of lien leave from August 1, 2016, to July 31, 2021, to serve as a professor and pro-vice-chancellor at ULAB. Under DU rules, a teacher can generally take lien leave for up to four years, although the provision previously allowed up to five years.

Mortuza was promoted to professor on June 15, 2015. The following year, he went on lien to serve as ULAB’s pro-vice-chancellor from 2016 to 2021, while also serving as a special adviser to the university’s Board of Trustees.

According to documents related to DU, Mortuza has been allowed to join ULAB as vice-chancellor subject to consideration of four years of lien leave from February 22, 2026. The arrangement also requires 10% of the overhead charge from the institution where he serves to be paid to Dhaka University.

What DU officials say

There are precedents of DU teachers taking leave to serve in administrative positions at private universities. Professor Dr Md Abdur Razzak of DU’s Department of Computer Science and Engineering, for example, served as pro-vice-chancellor of Green University of Bangladesh after taking lien leave.

The Ministry of Education appointed Razzak to the post in November 2020. He later returned to DU before completing four years after his lien period ended, having served as pro-vice-chancellor for about 10 months.

A source at Green University said Razzak was involved in various academic and administrative activities during his tenure. Razzak told The Daily Campus that he was in a meeting and declined to comment further, advising the newspaper to speak to university administration officials.

DU Registrar Munshi Shams Uddin Ahmed told The Daily Campus that a teacher or officer can take lien leave only once during their service and that the maximum period is five years.

“A university teacher or officer can take lien leave only once during their service. There is an opportunity to take lien leave for up to five years at a time. After five years, the concerned teacher or officer must return to the university and rejoin their job. There is no opportunity to take lien leave for more than that.”

He added that the five-year period can also be renewed annually rather than being taken at once, allowing a maximum of five years in total.

Asked specifically about Mortuza’s case, the registrar said he would need to examine the type of leave previously taken and the provision under which the current leave was granted before commenting.

DU Pro-Vice-Chancellor (Education) Professor Dr Abdus Salam also said taking another four-year lien after a previous period is highly uncommon, although the university may consider such a request in special circumstances.

“Generally, a teacher takes lien leave for four years only once. There are very few precedents at the university of someone taking another four years of leave. However, if a teacher seeks lien leave again, the university can consider it under special circumstances.”

Salam said DU had not yet received any new information regarding Mortuza’s leave and that the matter could be discussed after a decision is taken by the Syndicate.

Mortuza says he was given deputation

Mortuza, however, offered a different explanation of the arrangement. He told The Daily Campus that he had not applied for lien leave and had instead been granted four years of leave on deputation to serve as ULAB vice-chancellor.

“I did not apply for lien. I was given four years of leave on deputation. The letter I have says that I have been given four years to serve as vice-chancellor. That is all I know.”

He said he later heard that the deputation clause could be changed, but had not received the relevant file.

Mortuza also said he had returned to DU in 2022 and had remained academically active there through 2026, teaching courses and supervising PhD students.

“I have continued supervising PhD students. This semester, I taught two courses and completed both. I submitted the questions last week,” he said.

He added that he had served as chairman of the Seven Colleges, director of the International Office, head of the China Centre and worked with the university’s ranking committee. He also said he supervised six PhD students.

However, two ULAB sources, speaking on condition of anonymity, alleged that although Mortuza formally returned to DU between his tenures as pro-vice-chancellor and vice-chancellor at ULAB, he remained involved with ULAB in various ways.

A source in DU’s Department of English also noted that Mortuza joined ULAB in 2016, a year after being promoted to professor, meaning a significant portion of his career as a professor has been spent at ULAB.

The final decision on Mortuza’s proposed leave will depend on the relevant DU authorities and the Syndicate’s consideration of the matter.