BCL men beat up agitating JnU students

Leaders and activists of Bangladesh Chhatra League yesterday allegedly attacked the agitating students of Jagannath University (JnU) during their sit-in for residential halls.

In the attack, several students, including Animesh Roy of Law department and Runia Aktar Jhumur of Bangla department, were injured. 

Critically injured Animesh was admitted to Dhaka Medical College Hospital.

A few days after the beginning of the movement on August 2, JnU Proctor Nur Mohammad and a few other teachers manhandled Animesh and several other students. The Daily Star has photographs of the incident.

Contacted, Nur Mohammad said, “This was an incident of manhandling; it was nothing more."

Witnesses said the agitated students gathered on the campus around 8:30am and brought out a procession there. When their procession reached the main gate, a group of BCL's JnU unit men, led by its General Secretary Sirajul Islam, tried to take the leadership of the procession around 9:00am.

“As we refused to give them the leadership, Sirajul and his men beat us,” said protester Tithi Chakraborty, also organisation secretary of Samajtantrik Chattra Front of the JnU unit.

Later, the protesters gathered at Shakharibazar.

“[JnU unit] Chattra League President Shariful Islam tried to speak, but he was not given the microphone. At one stage, their men cut off cable connection with the microphone and swooped on the protesters,” said Arup Sarkar, another demonstrator.

“He [Shariful] hit Animesh in his head with elbow,” said Arup.   

Protesters blocked the road in Bahadur Shah Park area around 11:00am. The BCL men also attacked the demonstrators there, said Tithi, adding that the BCL men also threw burning tyres at female protesters.

Contacted, Shariful denied the allegations.

“Those who want to foil the ongoing protest carried out the attack,” he said.

About the "BCL" attack, Proctor Nur Mohammad said, “No one has complained to me in this regard. After getting complaint, we'll take action."

He was talking to The Daily Star over the phone last night.

Over the persistent accommodation crisis, the students began their demonstration on August 2 for new halls to be built on the spot where the Dhaka Central Jail was previously situated on Nazimuddin Road in old Dhaka.

On August 17, the students staged a sit-in in front of the Jatiya Press Club after their attempts to lay siege to the education ministry was foiled by police. They observed strike the next day.

The students tried to march to the Prime Minister's Office on Monday. But they were barred at Bangshal from where they declared that they would abstain from attending classes for next two days.

Currently, around 21,000 students are studying at JnU.