‘Most of the attackers were outsiders, 20-30 female students injured’

After a clash with the students demonstrating for reform in the quota system in government jobs, the Bangladesh Chhatra League leaders and activists attacked them on Monday.

Many female students were also injured in the attack on Dhaka University campus. Some of them suffered head injuries while some suffered severe injuries to their hands and feet.

Allegations have it that female students were attacked mainly by the leaders and activists of Bangladesh Chhatra League, student wing of governing Bangladesh Awami League, who were brought to the campus from outside especially Monday.

According to the allegations of the students and witness accounts, during the clashes on Monday afternoon, the students ran from the campus’ ‘Mal Chattar’ towards the vice chancellor’s residence as they were chased by the BCL men.

Some leaders and activists of Dhaka's north and south city units of Chhatra League chased them. Many of them had helmets on their heads and they were carrying sticks, hockey sticks, steel pipes and so on.

Several female students alleged to Prothom Alo that when they were running towards the ‘VC square’ after being chased by the BCL leaders and activists, they found a double-decker bus of the university stationed in the square. More than 50 students got on that bus. Despite this, the BCL men brought from outside did not spare them. They forced them to get down from the bus and started beating them.

Some of the terrified students ran towards the Central Shaheed Minar through Fuller Road leaving their shoes, bags and umbrellas while some went towards Palashi and some towards Nilkhet. Some of the students sustained head injuries in this incident.

Tanjila Tasnim, a student of the mass communication and journalism department at Dhaka University, was attacked by BCL leaders and activists in the VC square.

She alleged, “A student of Bangladesh-Kuwait Friendship Hall was injured after being hit by a brickbat in the VC square. I could not leave her behind. At that time some people wearing helmets came and asked us to move. I didn’t know what to do. I said we are waging a rational movement. Then the person wearing the helmet twisted my right hand.”

“I feel bad, I was attacked this way on my own campus,” Tanjila said.

Peace and conflict department student Sultana Akhtar said that many of the female students could not run away after being chased by the BCL leaders and activists. The leaders and activists of the BCL wearing helmets beat those girls with sticks severely.

Nahid Islam, one of the coordinators of the “anti-discriminatory student movement”, the platform leading the ongoing quota reform movement, claimed to Prothom Alo on Tuesday afternoon that over 200 demonstrating students, including 20-30 female students, sustained injuries in the BCL attack. Most of the injured female students are students of Dhaka University.

When this correspondent phoned Dhaka University proctor Maksudur Rahman Tuesday afternoon to inquire about the entry of outsiders into the campus and the assault of female students, he said that he was in a meeting with the Vice-Chancellor and could not speak at the moment.