BCL men assault quota reformists

Defying Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina's warning, Chhatra League men attacked four quota reformists in Elephant Road and Suhrawardy Uddyan areas.

The attack came hours after Awami League General Secretary Obaidul Quader said the prime minister had warned BCL leaders and activists about overzealous actions against quota reforms activists.

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While briefing journalists at his secretariat office yesterday morning, Quader, also the road, transport and bridges minister, said, “After the rally at the Suhrawardy Udyan, the prime minister, in my presence, warned BCL leaders and activists that she doesn't want to hear any more complaints against Chhatra League of doing excesses.”

During yesterday's incident in Elephant Road area, a group of BCL men, led by Amir Hamza, joint general secretary of Shaheed Sergeant Zahurul Haq Hall unit of BCL, and Saidur Rahman Uzzal, organising secretary of BCL Dhaka University unit, allegedly attacked three joint-conveners of the quota reform platform Bangladesh Sadharan Chhatra Odhikar Sangrakkhan Parishad.

Talking to The Daily Star, Niazi Sarker, one of the victims, said the BCL men attacked him and two others -- Ratul Sarker and Sohrab Hossain -- when they were returning home after a rally in an auto-rickshaw around 5:10pm.

“A group of Chhatra League men, who were present around the rally, kept following us on four motorcycles and intercepted our vehicle at Kantaban intersection.

“They dragged us out and we got into a scuffle,” he said.

He added that while he and Ratul managed to escape, Sohrab could not and was beaten up.

Contacted, both BCL leaders denied beating up anyone.

“We were going through Bata Signal, where we stopped a CNG as it had collided with my bike. Later, we talked to the driver and we had an altercation,” said Saidur.

He said he did not know who were inside the vehicle and had not spoken to them.

However, in a video clip run by a TV channel, around seven to eight BCL men, including Amir and Saidur, were seen beating up the three protestors.

They first labelled the quota reformists “muggers” and later Amir held Ratul's while the others slapped and punched him. They then beat the other two in the same way.

The video also showed two policemen at the spot trying to intervene but the BCL paid no heed to them.

Meanwhile, another group of Chhatra League activists, led by Ariful Islam Lemon, vice-president of the recently dissolved central unit, assaulted a protestor inside Suhrawardy Udyan.

Witnesses said the victim had managed to escape and his identity could not be immediately known.

A group of BCL men attacked a Chhatra Federation activist of Jagannath University on the campus yesterday allegedly for criticising the BCL's role in the quota reforms movement on Facebook.

Witnesses said Rakibul Rakib, a student of Anthropology, was attacked by 10 to 12 BCL activists in front of the BBA building after he finished his classes around 12:30pm.

He was first taken to National Medical College and Hospital from where he was moved to Dhaka Medical College Hospital.

Since the quota reform movement reached its peak in April, BCL men have attacked quota reformists at least 17 times, injuring around 79 students of four public universities.

Chhatra League men first swooped on quota reform activists on June 30. Since then, neither the police nor university authorities have taken any action against the attackers.

Some quota reforms movement leaders were allegedly picked up by members of BCL and handed over to police. They were shown arrested in different cases and placed on remand.

Earlier in the day, around 300 students of DU staged a protest rally at the base of Raju Memorial Sculpture, protesting the recent spate of attacks on students and teachers in different universities and demanding immediate release of the arrested quota reforms movement leaders.

The speakers held the university authorities responsible for the attacks and criticised their inaction.

They also announced a protest rally on July 25 in all colleges and public universities across the country.

TEACHERS PROTEST

Under the banner of “concerned teachers of Dhaka University”, a section of DU teachers formed a human chain in front of Kala Bhaban, protesting the “evil attempt to disrupt educational atmosphere of the university”.

They questioned the protest programmes of “Teachers Against Repression” which was vocal against the BCL.

They said they also want quota reforms but a vested quarter was “trying to catch fish in troubled waters”.

CHITTAGONG UNIVERSITY

Students of communication and journalism department of Chittagong University could not protest against the BCL declaration that the department's Assistant Professor Khandakar Ali Ar Raji was unwelcomed on the campus.

The programme was cancelled after BCL activists threatened the protestors.

Witnesses said the students gathered in front of the CU Social Science Faculty around 11:30am to form a human chain when a group of 50-60 BCL leaders and activists, led by former BCL CU unit vice-president Mansur Alam, went there and threatened them, witnesses said.

Before the protest programme, BCL men also threatened the department's students in their classrooms.

Failing to form the human chain, the students in protest attended classes with their faces covered with black cloths. Later, the students boycott classes for an indefinite period, demanding security in classrooms and protesting the BCL's threats.