Over 35 people were injured as students from 37 colleges locked into fierce clashes and vandalised Government Shahid Suhrawardy College in the old part of the capital city of Dhaka over the death of a student due to negligence’.
Tensions have been brewing among some students since November 18 when a student of Dr Mahbubur Rahman Molla College (DMRC) died at the Dhaka National Medical College (DNMC) near Jagannath University. Students blamed his death on doctors' negligence and have been staging regular protests in front of the medical college. On November 21, they said they came under attack by the students of Kabi Nazrul Govt College in which at least 20 of them were injured.
According to witnesses and police, nearly 3,000 protesters, mostly students, attacked Kabi Nazrul college and Sohrawardy college on Sunday noon.
They said the protesters first tried to break into the Kabi Nazrul college compound by demolishing the front gate but failed. Then they turned their attention to Sohrawardy college and vandalised it.
Witnesses said students from over 35 educational institutions in Dhaka and Narayanganj took part in the attack.
At least six vehicles including an ambulance, private car, and motorcycle of Sohrawardy College were vandalised, and important goods of the college were looted during the attack, reports our JnU correspondent.
As some students of Suhrawardy college tried to prevent the unruly students, a chase and counter-chase took place between them.
The protests and subsequent clashes also triggered traffic chaos in the adjacent areas, causing suffering to commuters.
Additional police forces were deployed to maintain law and order and army personnel were seen attempting to calm the protesters inside the gate.
A protesting student said the violence ensued when students of Kabi Nazrul and Sohrawardy colleges attacked them.
"Students of DMRC and nearby colleges were protesting peacefully in front of National Medical since the morning. Then they attacked us again and we retaliated. Nearly 25-30 of us have been injured so far," he told our correspondent.
Professor Dr Kakali Mukhopadhyay, the principal of Sohrawardy College, accused the administration of failing to provide security to the college, especially when it was holding examinations.
She said she spoke to the principal of DMRC College last night.
"The principal said that he has talked to the aggrieved guardians and teachers and assured me that nothing will happen today," she said.
"Around 1:15pm, before we could understand anything, we saw on CCTV that a lot of boys and girls gathered before the college gate. They broke the gate and entered and carried out widespread vandalism. Cars and office rooms were smashed," she said.
"Can these be students? Students cannot do so much mischief," she said, questioning the identity of the attackers.
Contacted, Md. Jasim Uddin, deputy commissioner of DMP's Lalbagh Zone, acknowledged the attack and said the violence came despite the medical college authorities's formation of an investigation committee to find out if the accusation of negligence is true or not.
Additional police forces were deployed to maintain law and order and army personnel were seen attempting to calm the protesters inside the gate, reports our correspondent.
Several journalists were also harassed during the attack.
According to media reports, Abhijit, a student of the SSC batch 2024 of Dr Mahbubur Rahman Molla College (DMRC), died at Dhaka National Medical College Hospital while taking treatment for dengue.
His family said, that a day earlier, when Abhijit's platelets decreased, they wanted to take him to Dhaka Medical College and Hospital, but couldn't as the hospital authorities did not allow the move.
They also alleged that, after Abhijit's death, the hospital authorities held the body hostage for money.
On November 20, the students of DMRC started protesting the death and the events surrounding it. Later, in the evening police forcefully dispersed them.
On November 21, the DMRC students alleged that Chhatra Dal activists of Kabi Nazrul and Sohrawardy College attacked them while staging a protest in front of National Medical. At least 20 students were injured that day, they claimed.
