In a major escalation of violence, at least six people, including three students, were killed and several hundred injured in clashes between quota protesters and Chhatra League activists and police across the country yesterday.
Three, including two students, were killed in clashes between the protesters and Chhatra League men in Chattogram.
In the capital, two people died after being attacked in Dhaka College and Science Lab areas where protesters and Chhatra League activists fought pitched battles for more than seven hours.
In Rangpur, a student of Begum Rokeya University was killed in police firing during a protest.
Incensed by Monday’s BCL attacks at Dhaka University campus, the quota protests swelled yesterday with students from private universities and colleges joining in.
Soon the violence spread nationwide. Clashes between Chhatra League men and police and students demanding reforms to the quota system were reported in Rajshahi, Bogura, Jhenidah, Cox’s Bazar, Narsingdi, Sirajganj, Barishal, Kishoreganj, and Faridpur as well.
The government deployed BGB in Dhaka, Chattogram, Bogura, Rangpur, Rajshahi and Gazipur. It closed secondary schools and colleges indefinitely and suspended the HSC exams scheduled for Thursday.
Hasnat Abdullah, one of the coordinators of the quota-reforms movement, said state-sponsored attacks were carried out against the protesters across the country.
The demonstrators did not declare any programmes for today as of filing of this report at 10:30pm.
Yesterday, they blocked key intersections in the capital, including Jatrabari, Science Lab, Pragati Sarani, Shantinagar, Badda, Motijheel Shapla Chattar, Tantibazar, Uttara, and Beribandh, bringing traffic to a halt.
They also blocked rail lines in Mohakhali for more than six hours, snapping communications between Dhaka and most parts of the country.
The students also obstructed Dhaka-Chattogram, Dhaka-Sylhet, Dhaka-Tangail, Dhaka-Mymensingh and Chattogram-Cox’s Bazar highways for most of the day.
Tension was high on public university campuses yesterday following the incidents of attacks on Dhaka University and Jahangirnagar University students on Monday and early yesterday.
Yesterday, Chhatra League and quota protesters held separate rallies on DU campus. Both the groups ended their programmes without any major incident. Chhatra League held a rally near TSC while the demonstrators held their rally at the Central Shaheed Minar in the evening.
But there was mayhem in Dhaka College and Science Lab areas and violence in Chankharpul, Rayshahebbazar of Old Dhaka, Bhatara on Pragati Sarani, Mirpur-10, and Farmgate.
Two youths were killed during clashes in Dhaka College and Science Lab areas between Chhatra League men and protesters.
One of two was identified as Md Shajahan, 24, a cloth hawker who had a makeshift shop in front of Balaka Cinema Hall.
He was found in a pool of blood near City College and was declared dead at Dhaka Medical College Hospital around 7:00pm.
“My son had nothing to do with the protest. He was a hawker. Who killed him?” lamented Ayesha Begum, the mother of the youth, at the DMCH.
In the afternoon, another youth with critical head injuries was found near Dhaka College. The man aged about 25 was taken to DMCH where he was declared dead. His identity could not be known.
Science Laboratory area turned into a war zone as clashes continued between quota protesters, mostly college students, and Chhatra League activists for seven hours.
Both stick-wielding groups threw brick chunks at each other and chased each other.
The clash ensued around 1:45pm and finally ended after 8:45pm.
At least 100 people, including protesters and Chhatra League activists, were injured there.
At least 10 crude bombs exploded during the clashes.
Chase and counter chase continued for hours with brief pauses. At least two policemen were assaulted at the time. And the protesters vandalized a police box.
Around 7:00pm, the protesters chased away Awami League leader and former member of parliament Haji Salim at Science Lab intersection near LabAid Hospital.
Md Babu, who accompanied Haji Selim, told that the AL leader had seen a doctor and was leaving in his vehicle when 300 to 400 protesters stopped his and the accompanying vehicle.
Haji Salim and four of his aides were chased into the LabAid Hospital.
Four students of Jagannath University and a student of Kobi Nazrul Govt College were shot at Rayshahebbazar intersection in Old Dhaka.
Protesters claimed that when several hundred students took out a procession around 3:30pm, Awami League and Jubo League activists attacked them.
The five were undergoing treatment at the DMCH.
Meanwhile, a brief clash broke out between students of Dhaka International University, United International University and American International University, Bangladesh, and activists of Chhatra League in Bhatara area around noon.
Rajon Kumar Saha, assistant commissioner of Badda zone, said, “We removed the Chhatra League activists from the area and the students were demonstrating on the road.”
Students of BRAC University blocked a road in Merul Badda area around 10:00am.
Habibur Rahman, commissioner of the Dhaka Metropolitan Police (DMP), said, “We are working strategically to keep the law-and-order situation under control.”
“A police sergeant and a constable were hurt …”
CHATTOGRAM
Three people were killed during clashes between the quota protesters and Chhatra League men in Chattogram.
The deceased were Wasim Akram, 24, a student of Chittagong College, Faisal Ahmed, 24, student of management at the Omargani MES College, and Md Faruk, 32, an employee of a furniture shop, said Chittagong Medical College Hospital doctors and police.
Nuzhat Inu, on duty doctor at the CMCH, said the body of Faruk had bullet injury mark while Akram was stabbed.
Some 30 injured people were admitted to hospital.
CMCH Director Brig Gen Taslim Uddin said the condition of two were critical.
Witnesses said the protesters were supposed to hold a rally in Sholashahar Railway Station area around 3:00pm, but Chhatra League activists occupied the venue since 1:00pm.
When the demonstrators were heading towards the venue in droves, Chhatra League men attacked them at Muradpur, Sholashahar Railway Station and Sholashahar Gate No 2, triggering chases and counter chases, they said.
In Muradpur, Chhatra League activists hurling brick chunks at students, prompting the students to retaliate in kind. There were running battles.
Chhatra League activists retreated and went inside Belal Complex, a commercial building near Muradpur intersection.
They started throwing brick chunks at protesters from the roof of the building.
The demonstrators then stormed the building and beat up the Chhatra League men, said witnesses.
During the clash, several gunshots were heard.
“At least 10 Chhatra League activists were stabbed,” claimed Nurul Azim Roni, former general secretary of Chattogram city unit Chhatra League.
Saiful Islam, commissioner of Chattogram Metropolitan Police (CMP), told BARTA7 that they recovered two bodies from Sholashahar Railway Station area around 4:30pm.
RANGPUR
Abu Sayed, 25, a student of the English Department at the Begum Rokeya University in Rangpur, was killed during a clash between police and the protesters on campus yesterday.
He was the son of Mokbul Hossain from Babanpur village of Rangpur’s Pirganj upazila.
Demonstrators said a procession of students from Lalbagh area reached the university Gate-1 around 2:30pm and a clash ensued with the police.
A video clip making the rounds in social media shows a shot being fired at Sayed when he is standing with his arms spread out in front of a group of police across the street. Moments later, he is seen falling to the ground before being attended to by fellow students.
A student who took Sayed to the hospital, said, “Police were firing rubber bullets and tear gas at us. Sayed was hit in the chest and fell unconscious on the street. We took him to the hospital in a battery-run rickshaw. I tried to talk to him, but he did not respond.”
Eunus Ali, director of Rangpur Medical College Hospital, said, “One injured student was brought dead to the hospital at 3:05pm.”
“The emergency unit informed me that he suffered injuries from rubber bullets,” he said.
Around 30 students, including several female students, were also injured in the incident.
Md Moniruzzaman, commissioner of Rangpur Metropolitan Police, told BARTA7 that a group of students were demonstrating on campus around 2:30pm.
He said students from nearby education institutions also joined the protest.
He claimed that the protesters attacked a police station nearby, injuring several police personnel, and damaged vehicles. The clash ensued as police retaliated, he said.
Tension intensified when student attempted to take Sayed’s body to the campus as the police intercepted and took the body to the hospital for autopsy.
