Violence erupts across university campuses in Bangladesh; dozens injured
Dhaka, Aug 5 (IANS) Clashes between rival student organisations across several universities in Bangladesh have left dozens injured, prompting authorities to launch investigations and deploy additional police to restore order, local media reported on Wednesday.
The clashes, involving members of the Jatiyatabadi Chhatra Dal (JCD), the student wing of the ruling Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP), and Islami Chhatra Shibir, the student wing of the radical Islamist party Jamaat-e-Islami, spread across several campuses, including Begum Rokeya University in Rangpur, Jagannath University, Dhaka College, and Government Madrasah-e-Alia in the capital.
The violence unfolded amid escalating tensions between rival student organisations over ideological differences, campus influence, and organisational supremacy, underscoring how universities that spearheaded the 2024 protests are once again emerging as flashpoints for political confrontation, leading Bangladeshi daily The Dhaka Tribune reported.
Additionally, a clash erupted between members of the Chhatra Dal and Islami Chhatra Shibir at Dhaka College on Tuesday afternoon, leaving several people from both sides injured, according to police.
Speaking to Bangladeshi daily Prothom Alo, Sheikh Zahidul Islam, Deputy Commissioner of the Ramna Division of the Dhaka Metropolitan Police, said that the clash occurred inside the Dhaka College campus.
“Several people have been injured. Police are not stationed inside the campus. We responded after receiving information about the incident,” he said.
Citing a police source, Prothom Alo reported that tensions at Dhaka College escalated following an earlier confrontation at Jagannath University, where Chhatra Dal members clashed with leaders and members of the Jagannath University Central Students’ Union (JnUCSU) and Chhatra Shakti over entry to a seminar marking the second anniversary of the 2024 July demonstrations.
The violence later spread to the National Medical College Hospital, where injured students had been admitted for treatment.
Doctors said that by Tuesday evening, more than 70 people had been treated for injuries, making it the most severe episode in the recent spate of campus clashes.
Those injured included leaders and activists from Chhatra Dal, Islami Chhatra Shibir, Chhatra Shakti, the university’s central students’ union, as well as several journalists.
Reports suggest that the first major clash broke out on Monday evening at Begum Rokeya University during an exhibition to mark the July 2024 demonstrations.
According to university authorities, the violence erupted after Chhatra Dal members objected to a banner titled ‘Judicial Killing’, displaying images of six Jamaat-e-Islami and BNP leaders convicted of crimes against humanity during the 1971 Bangladesh Liberation War.
The dispute soon escalated, triggering more than five hours of repeated chases and counter-chases between Chhatra Dal and Islami Chhatra Shibir.
Witnesses said members from both groups were armed with locally made sharp weapons, hockey sticks, iron rods, bamboo poles and helmets, while traffic outside the campus came to a standstill, The Dhaka Tribune reported.
Amid escalating tensions on university campuses, the administrations of Begum Rokeya University and Jagannath University on Tuesday night announced separate inquiry committees, while police remained deployed at several campuses across Dhaka to prevent further violence.
–IANS
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