Brawl over asking questions though Hasnat for continuing dissents

“We don’t want you to express solidarity with us. We want expressions of dissent to continue. We will be able to reach a solution through dissent, otherwise it won’t be possible,” said Hasnat Abdullah, one of the key coordinators of Students Against Discrimination, Sunday.

He was speaking at a meeting to exchange views at Chittagong University over reforming Bangladesh after the post student-people uprising today.

However, there was an incident of brawl and altercation over asking questions to the coordinators at that meeting at the social science faculty auditorium.

Responding to a student’s question, Hasnat Abdullah said, “We are not saying whether we would form a political party or not now. But even if we form one, what would be its political ideology? We must think over this. Otherwise there would be an administrative fascist structure.”

“The question that has been raised here, whether the political settlement would be based on 1971 or 2024. If you consider 19971 as the basis, then that was based on the narrative of Awami League. That has been twisted. Was the liberation war only of the Awami League? Look at the constitution - it has been composed based on the (results of the) elections of 1970. And Awami League was the representative of 1970. Then whose constitution is this? Was the constitution universal?” he said at the meeting.

Hasnat Abdullah further said, “There could be discussions on this, there could be debates.  You will have to think and make a decision. Will you maintain the legacy of 1971, the legacy of the Constituent Assembly of 1970 or not? Or do you want to establish the paradigm shift that has happened in 2024?”

Central coordinator Mohammad Russell Ahmed, co-coordinator Khan Talat Mahmud and coordinator of Chittagong University Mahfuzur Rahman were present at that time.

Meanwhile, there was a brawl and altercation between the two factions of the students during the meeting with the coordinators of the Students Against Discrimination around 2:00 pm.

The students asked the coordinators various questions, including on forming a committee in Chittagong University on 5 August and not making the activities at the university active after the fall of the government.

At that time, taking the side of the coordinators of the student movement, Shakhawat Hossain, a postgraduate student of the Islamic Studies department said, “Our coordinator brothers were our place of trust and confidence. Those who want to come forward in the name of the movement today were associates of Sheikh Hasina in the past. They were partners in crime.”

Following this statement, there was an altercation and a brawl.

When four students of English and Physics departments at the university asked whether there is any necessity of this committee, especially considering the activities of the coordinators and the current time, there was an attempt to attack them.

However, the situation came under control at the request of coordinator Hasnat Abdullah after a while.