She wanted safe road, she now becomes victim

She was among those who demanded safe roads during the student movement in 2018. Four years later, she herself has become a victim of road accident.

Maisha Momotaz Meem, 22, a North South University student, was killed on the Kuril Flyover in the capital yesterday morning when she was going to the NSU campus on her scooter to attend a programme, Munshi Sabbir, officer-in-charge of Khilkhet Police Station, told The Daily Star.

"CCTV footage of the area shows that a covered van was closely passing by Meem's scooter on the flyover. But it is not clear in the footage whether the vehicle hit her scooter," he said, adding that she was found dead around 7:30am.

Police are trying to identify the vehicle and arrest its driver, the OC added.

Seven more people, including three schoolchildren, were killed in road crashes in different districts yesterday.

Meem, a sixth-semester student of NSU's English department, was rushed to Kurmitola General Hospital where doctors declared her dead.

She was the daughter of Nur Mohammad Mamun, founding director of Mouchak Ideal Public School and College in Gazipur. She was the eldest among two siblings. Her family lives in Uttara's Sector-6, said police.

Her cousin Zakir Hossain told reporters that her father bought her the scooter six months ago.

Quoting witnesses, he saida recklessly driven covered van hit her scooter and at that time she had a helmet on her head.

Losing their daughter, father Nur Mohammad and mother Asima Begum were fainting repeatedly at their Gazipur house, he said.

Nakib Ali Kamrul, another cousin of Meem, told The Daily Star that Meem wished to go abroad for higher studies.

"It is the transport owners who are responsible for such road crashes as they employ unskilled drivers to save money," he said.

Talking to reporters, Nur Mohammad lamented, "Why did I buy her the scooter? I havelost my daughter because of the scooter..."

Meem was buried at her family graveyard in Gazipur last night.

Quoting a Kurmitola General Hospital doctor, Sharmee Hossain, a teacher of NSU's English department, wrote on Facebook that a carpenter took Meem's body to the hospital from the spot."I could recall the student movement for safe roads in 2018 over the death of a schoolgirl. The name of that girl was also Meem," the teacher wrote.

On August 4, 2018, the NSU studentgave a Facebook post, demanding safe roads during the movement.

7 MORE DIE ON ROADS

Seven people, including three schoolchildren, were killed in road accidents in Dhaka, Tangail, Natore, Manikganj, Munshiganj and Gaibandha yesterday.

A road crash claimed the life of 12-year-old Shohag, a class-III student, in the capital's Jatrabari when he was going to play with other children around 6:00am, said Rafikul Islam, sub-inspector of Jatrabari Police Station.

In Natore, eight-year-old Mim Akhter, a class-II student, was killed after a bus hit a rickshaw van in Lalpur upazila around 9:30am, said Lalpur Police Station OC Md Monoaruzzaman.

Madrasa student Atikur Rahman, 12, was killed when a cement-laden truck hit his bicycle in Gaibandha's Fulchari, said Momirul Haque, sub-inspector of Fulchari Police Station.

In Tangail, two people were killed and six others injured after a pick-up hit a battery-run rickshaw in Tangail's Kalihati.

The victims are auto-rickshaw driver Ramjan Ali, 55, and its passenger Rina Aktar, 30, said Molla Azizur Rahman, OC of Kalihati Police Station.

In Munshiganj, day labourer Nazmul Hossain, 19, died and three were injured when a locally made three-wheeler overturned in Sadar upazila.

In another accident, fish trader Harun Bepari, 55, was killed after a pick-up hit a CNG-run auto-rickshaw on the Dhaka-Aricha highway in Manikganj's Shibaloy, said Inspector Zakir Hossain of Barangail Highway Police Outpost.

[Our correspondents in Natore, Bogura, Tangail, Munshiganj and Manikganj contributed to this report.]