A case has been filed over allegations that Rajshahi Medical University (RMU) Vice-Chancellor Prof Dr Md Jawadul Haque and his personal secretary, Section Officer Nazmul Hossain, were forced at gunpoint to sign resignation letters.

Nazmul filed the case with Rajpara Police Station in Rajshahi city on Tuesday night, accusing 50-60 unidentified people.

Police later arrested Abdus Salam, vice-president of the Rajpara thana unit of BNP, from his residence in the Paramedical area of the city in connection with the case.

Rajshahi Metropolitan Police spokesperson Deputy Commissioner Gaziur Rahman said the case was filed over allegations of forcing the VC and his personal secretary to resign, obstructing government duties, intimidation, physical assault, looting government property and confining them at the university.

Police arrested Salam late Tuesday night after the case was recorded and are working to identify and arrest other accused individuals by examining video footage, the police official said.

Meanwhile, university officials and employees formed a human chain on Wednesday to protest the alleged humiliation, assault, threats to the VC’s life and forcing him to sign a resignation letter.

The campus has remained tense since the incident. Officials and employees said they were attending the university but were unable to perform their duties properly.

“An environment conducive to work has not been created at the university. The entire campus remains tense. Following such an incident involving the head of the university, everyone is feeling insecure,” Deputy Registrar Dr Md Mofakhharul Islam said.

On Tuesday, leaders and activists of BNP and its affiliated Krishak Dal allegedly entered the VC’s office and forced him to sign a resignation letter they had prepared. He was subsequently removed from his office.

When Nazmul tried to protect the VC, he was also allegedly assaulted and forced to sign a resignation letter.

Speaking to reporters later, Jawadul Haque said people backed by contractors and political groups had previously held a human chain demanding his resignation.

“They would often ask me for contract work. Their demand was that I forcibly arrange work for them,” he said.

“At around 11:30am yesterday, they suddenly forced their way into my office. They accused me of giving work to a contractor from Dhaka instead of them. At one point, they humiliated me by calling me an Awami League accomplice. They created a mob, snatched my mobile phone and, threatening to kill me, forced me to sign a resignation letter they had prepared,” he said.

The VC said the group then removed him from the office and locked it after obtaining his signature.

“A person cannot be forced to resign like this. But there is no situation in which I can return to the office. They confined my personal secretary Nazmul Hossain and subjected him to mental and physical harassment. They also took away the hard disk of the office’s CCTV system and the CPU of a computer. This is not a resignation through any lawful process; it is an act of terrorism,” he said.

Nazmul alleged that the attackers were armed.

“They had weapons. They forced me to sign while holding weapons against me. This was not a resignation; it was done at gunpoint,” he said.

Several attempts were made to contact Sharafuzzaman Shamim, convener of the Rajshahi city unit of Krishak Dal, for comment, but he did not respond.

Meanwhile, doctors from different levels of the profession held a protest meeting and formed a human chain in front of Rajshahi Medical College Hospital on Wednesday morning, protesting the alleged forcing of the RMU VC to resign by a mob.

Under the banner of the medical community of Rajshahi, the protesters demanded legal action against those involved in the incident.