So far, law enforcing agencies could not find any clue or motive for this shooting. Killing, institutionalized (such as some preplanned extra judicial killings by the police or Rab) or non-institutionalized, has already become a part of our political culture. But killing of university teachers in recent days, no doubt, has added a new dimension to it.

Educational institutions, especially universities, are, traditionally, places for exercising the freedom of speech. It was the teachers and students who echoed the voices of the masses and stood up against all sorts of repression and dictatorial rules. We experienced the role of these vanguards of the nation during the anti-military movements between the 1960s and 1980s. Students were killed for differences in political ideology.

But killing, or threat of killing, of teachers in recent days is something new in our post-liberation war era of political culture; probably a reflection of the impatient and intolerant practices encouraged and nurtured by our political leaders.

Unfortunately, generally speaking, our political leaders could not develop, or create, a culture of respect for others' political beliefs; they are yet to learn the art of agreeing to disagree. Another issue of concern is that the culprits of political killings usually go unpunished, especially in the universities. Had there been a precedent of bringing them to justice we could have saved dozens of lives on the campuses. And if the political parties patronize the killers, it becomes difficult for the law enforcing agencies to hunt for the culprits.

Right or wrong, Dr. Aftab had a voice; he was a political activist. He was not ashamed of saying what he believed. After his removal as Vice-Chancellor of National University, it is reported that he changed his previous strategy of political activism. He did not participate in the election campaign of the pro-government teachers panel, but instead worked against them, and criticized the government in a television talk show.

We do not know for sure if this shift of loyalty was the main cause of his death. One of the newspapers published a speculative report last Thursday (Daily Janakantha, Sept. 28), which stated that the government agencies might have known about the plot to kill Dr. Aftab before the shooting took place. If there is any truth in this speculation then the days are not far away when teachers would not raise their voices against any political regime. University teachers do not need to fight to protect their right to free speech and the autonomy of the universities, it will stop automatically.

Dr. Aftab was the teacher of Political Change and Development course in my BSS honours, and Politics of Developing Areas course in my Master's classes at Chittagong University. I found him to be a person with a passion for teaching and love for his students. It was common practice among the students to spend time with him in his office room after the scheduled class hours, discussing issues of concern, sometimes with an assurance of getting a ride to town with him on the teacher's bus. As students, we were aware of the fact that he had been a student leader, one of the organizers of the mass uprising of 1969, and a freedom fighter.

During his days at the University of Chittagong he was a bona fide socialist. I can still remember some of his lectures about the evils of finance capitalism, the vices of military rule in the developing nations, and why a new social order is necessary for the emancipation of the masses of this country.

Regardless of our ideological differences, we liked his style of delivering lectures, which at times seemed to be the persuasive deliberation of a political leader, and sometimes seemed to be story-telling. He did not dare to criticize the government, political parties and their leaders, and any public policy of any sort. He could move students. Some of us students used to dream about how good it would be to become a university teacher.

In addition to his gifted talent of motivating students, another quality was his ability to develop personal relationships with students. I know some of his students who received teaching jobs at different colleges with his blessings. I was also one of them. After the completion of my university courses, he gave me the permission to use his address as my mailing address on my job applications as I did not have permanent residence in Chittagong. I was just one of his students, not a relative or someone who hailed from the same district. He used to keep paper cuttings of job ads for his students.

My last meeting with him was in the summer of 2000 at his Raja Bazar residence. At that time, he was just recovering from a stroke; he could not even hold a pen in his right hand when I visited him. Our conversation covered various issues, including politics. I noticed a different tone in his voice. I was aware of his shifting ideology through the online editions of some Bangladeshi newspapers.

I remembered the proverb -- time changes and so do men. He was, then, a different man with a different perspective. But he was bold and clear, as before, in expressing his newly found pole of political ideology. However, he was frustrated with the traditional curricula of his department at the university. He had a precise idea of the new materials to be incorporated in the study of the culture of developing economies. He was as critical as before against the prescriptions of the World Bank and IMF. I do not know whether he held the same views when he took charge of the Department of Development Studies at the University of Dhaka, with his changed political ideology.

He must have been very controversial in his department. It has been reported in the newspapers that most of his departmental colleagues did not participate in his funeral procession. The department did not hold any special program in honour of his memory, although others did.

It was also noticed that no leader of Awami League paid tribute to this teacher and freedom fighter. Dr. Aftab was imprisoned for his ideological belief, and could not join the Department of Political Science of Dhaka University during the Bangabandhu era, even though in his doctoral dissertation he did not hesitate to pay due honour to that great leader.

Dr. Aftab is dead now. Everything will remain the way it is. Bubbles of some of his political activism will pop up as good examples, or bad examples, among his colleagues, but some of his students, like me, will remember him for a long time. We watched him from close proximity, were moved by his lectures, and encouraged to dream of a new social order. Regardless of his shift in ideology, he will remain as a teacher in our memory.

Sarwar Alam is an ex-student of Dr. Aftab Ahmad.