Students of Dhaka University have once again besieged the Shahbagh police station (PS), demanding the arrest of the ‘real’ accused in the murder of Shahriar Alam Samya, upon completion of a 48-hour ultimatum.
They initially held a rally at the Raju memorial sculpture around 12:00 pm. Later, they brought out a procession to the Shahbagh and besieged the police station. Their programme was underway until the filing of this report around 1:30pm.
Earlier, the students had besieged the police station with the same demand on Friday. They ended the programme with a 48-hour ultimatum to arrest those they claim are the true killers. As no arrests have been made within the given time, they resumed their protest.
The university’s vice chancellor (VC) and proctor joined the rally at the Raju sculpture. Addressing the protesters, VC Professor Niaz Ahmed Khan said some steps have already been taken by both the university administration and the police. The trial of Shahriar murder must be ensured unitedly, going above political differences.
Later, the protesting students marched to Shahbagh and staged a sit-in before the police station. They demanded that the real accused in the murder be arrested at the earliest. All the perpetrators must be brought under trial. But there is no visible progress, though a significant number of days have passed.
The students were seen chanting various slogans, including “Why did my brother die? The administration must answer,” and “Why the killers roam free when my brother is in the grave?”
Shahriar Alam Samya, a student of the 2018–19 session at the Institute of Education and Research, was stabbed to death last Tuesday by miscreants near the Mukta Mancha area in Suhrawardy Udyan. He was the literary and publication affairs secretary of the Sir AF Rahman Hall unit of Chhatra Dal.