Students of seven colleges have suspended their programs by announcing a blockade at various points in the capital until the trial of Dhaka University Pro Vice-Chancellor, Professor Mamun Ahmed.
They have announced an indefinite blockade program starting Monday. Their blockade program will continue from 9 am to 5 pm. They will protest the attacks on the movement and the one-sided behavior of the police.
Abdur Rahman, the focal person of the Seven College University Transformation Team, announced this program on behalf of the Seven College students.
He said that Dhaka University has become an authoritarian institution. We have been agitating for a long time to remove 7 colleges from the affiliation of DU and establish independent universities.
“Our demand was to conduct admission tests under independent universities from the current academic year. But Dhaka University did not do that. On the contrary, it has issued a notification for admission of more students than the capacity. We have given memorandums to various quarters regarding this.”
“The last university pro-VC (education) has behaved indecently with our students. In protest against this, while we were standing under the Nilkhet Democracy and Freedom Arch, Dhaka University students and police jointly attacked seven college students,” he said.
Abdur Rahman said that 7 colleges should be declared independent universities. The attack on students should be tried. Dhaka University Pro-VC Dr. Mamun Ahmed should be tried. Dhaka city will be blockaded from 9 am on Monday to protest the attack on students. Students of 7 colleges will observe blockade programs in their respective campus areas.
At around 10 PM, students of Dhaka College tried to enter the Dhaka University area with a protest march. Their aim was to surround the office of the DU Pro Vice-Chancellor, Professor Mamun Ahmed, attempting to enter the campus through the Liberation and Democracy Arch.
When this news spread, students from various halls of Dhaka University started to make noise, and the situation became tense. For a prolonged period, students from both sides engaged in alternating clashes. They took positions, throwing bricks and stones, in the Nilkhet and New Market areas.
To control the situation, the police used 12 sound grenades and stood between the two sides with water cannons and tear gas.
The incident began on Sunday afternoon when students from the seven colleges went to Prof Mamun Ahmed with a five-point demand.
They were not satisfied with his handling of the matter that led to the late night clashes.
Bd-pratidin English/Tanvir Raihan
