BCL men force all IU transports out of road
Release of 4 arrested leaders demanded
Vehicles of Kushtia Islami University get stranded at Chourhas in the town yesterday as Bangladesh Chhatra League activists, aggrieved at the arrest of four BCL leaders, forced the drivers to leave the vehicles roadside.Photo: STAR
A group of Bangladesh Chhatra League (BCL) activists at Islamic University (IU) yesterday stopped the plying of all university transports protesting the arrest of four BCL leaders and demanding their release. The BCL men also took away the keys of the transports from the drivers, forcing them to leave the buses at roadside. According to police, some BCL men, led by two former BCL IU unit presidents Shahnoor Alam Keramat and Abdur Rofel came to Chourhas area of the town and put barricade on the Kushtia-Jhenidah highway when at least 25 transports including buses of teachers, officials and students were about to start to campus at about 7:30 am. Drivers said the BCL men threatened them and took away the keys. “The BCL men asked us to stop plying the transports and threatened with dire consequences if we fail to comply with their order,” a driver said seeking anonymity. The BCL men also threatened to ransack the transports, the drivers said. Another group of BCL belonging to same faction also blocked the road in Choribeel area of Jhenidah, five-kilometer off the university campus, halting the plying of the university transports. They protested the arrest of nine villagers and demanded their release. All the arrestees were sent to jail on July 9 after their arrests on the previous day. No offices of the university opened or classes and examinations held as teachers, staff and students could not reach the university campus. After the incident, vice-chancellor Prof M Alauddin held a meeting with top university officials at his residence in Kushtia town. Contacted, university proctor Mahbubul Arefin said the authorities would take steps over the issue soon. Earlier, the BCL IU unit led by its president Jahangir Hossain and general secretary Shamsuzzaman Tuhin brought out a procession on the campus. They protested the incidents by some 'outsiders' and 'non-students' on the campus in last two days. They also demanded punishment of those involved in creating unrest on the campus. Meanwhile, chef judicial magistrate's court in Kushtia denied bail to the arrested four BCL leaders and nine other activists yesterday. They were sent to jail on Friday in two separate cases. Four BCL leaders were arrested during a raid at Bangabandhu Seikh Mujibur Rahan Hall on Thursday. The BCL leaders include BCL IU unit organising secretary Abu Jar Giffary Al Gaffar, joint secretary Mahbub Hossain Khokon and activists Zillur Rahman, Mahmuduzzaman Liton, Hasan Sohel Tagar and Saha Alam. All were students of the university. They were held on charge of putting barricade on highway on Thursday.
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