19 killed in clashes between student bodies since 2009
BCL found responsible for most of the casualties
Students' academic life has born the brunt of recurrent clashes between rival student organisations and factional infightings in the past two and a half years that have seen 19 students and student activists killed and played havoc with the academic atmosphere of a large number of the country's educational institutions.
According to newspaper reports, since the Awami League-led alliance came to power on January 6, 2009, several hundred students have also been injured in repeated clashes mainly between the activists of the AL-backed Bangladesh Chhatra League, Jatiyatabadi Chhatra Dal, the student wing of the main opposition Bangladesh Nationalist Party, the Workers Party's student front – Bangladesh Chhatra Maitree, and the Jamaat-e-Islami Bangladesh's student wing Islami Chhatra Shibir.
The period has seen 19 students die in violent clashes at Dhaka, Rajshahi, and Chittagong universities, Dhaka Medical College, Rajshahi Polytechnic Institute, Khulna Government City College, Sylhet MC College, Comilla Victoria University College, Dewanganj Madrassah in Jamalpur, Mohammadpur in the capital city, Mehendiganj in Barisal, and in Khulna, Rangpur, and Narayanganj cities as well as Narail and Panchagarh towns.
BCL factional infightings accounted for 11 of the 19 students killed in this time. Of the rest, four ICB activists, two JCD members, and one of Chhatra Maitree have died in clashes over gaining supremacy at educational institutions and in different localities, submission of tender bids, and incidents of extortion and drug peddling. Besides, a former student leader of the Comilla Victoria University College was murdered by some BCL leaders when he protested their stalking of her wife.
To start with the last, BCL Rangpur district unit former joint secretary Masud Rana died in a factional clash on September 2 this year at Alamnagar in Rangpur city following a conflict over share of some money made from a Power Development Board tender.
On July 25, 2011, some leaders of BCL Comilla Victoria University College unit dispatched Nurul Islam Apel, a former vice president of the student union of the same college, when he went to them to protest against their stalking of his wife Ayesha Akther.
On March 20 this year in Khulna, BCL Terokhada upazila unit general secretary Imran Fakir was gunned down during a skirmish between the supporters of two chairman candidates in the run-up to the union parishad elections.
On February 12, 2011, BCL Dhaka Cantonment thana unit president Faruk Hossain was finished off on the premises of Adarsha Biddaniketan at Manikdi in the capital city in a clash to grab the control of the underworld of the area and extortion and drug peddling rackets.
In August 2010, BCL activist Palash Jamaddar of Mehendiganj upazila in Barisal was killed in an intra-party fight.
On July 12, 2010, rivals slew BCL activist Udayendu Singha, a third-year student of mathematic at the Sylhet MC College.
BCL Dhaka city Adabar thana unit leader Wahiduzzaman was shot dead by a rival group on April 14, 2010 in the Pisciculture Housing Project area.
On the 8th of that month, BCL Panchagarh municipality ward 1 unit organising secretary Faruk Hossain was done in a Chhatra League-Juba League scrap over the right to submit bids for leasing 10 ponds from the municipal authorities.
BCL Narail Sadar upazila unit president Amirul Islam Apu was finished off by a rival group of the organisation on March 20, 2010.
Eight days later, on March 28, Harunur Rashid Kaiser, a student of marketing at Chittagong University, was found dead near Baradighirpar in the port city, while AAM Mohiuddin Masum, a final-year student of political science at the university, was hacked to death at Sholoshahar Railway Station around one and a half months earlier, on February 11, 2010. The CU ICU unit claimed Mohiuddin was one of its members, termed the murder a politically motivated one, and blamed the BCL for the butchery.
BCL Jessore town unit convener Ripon Hossain was rubbed out by the activists of his rival faction on March 14 last year at Bhekutia Bazar on the outskirts of the town.
On February 3, 2010, Abu Bakar Siddique, a third-year student of Islamic history at Dhaka University, died at the DMCH from injuries sustained in a fierce fighting on the previous night between two BCL factions – one led by DU Sir F Rahman Hall unit president Saiduzzaman Faruq and the other by unit general secretary Mehdi Hasan Molla – aiming at to get enthroned as the group ruling the dormitory.
On January 7, 2010, a BCL group of activists snuffed out Chhatra Maitree Rajshahi Polytechnic Institute unit vice president Rezanur Chowdhury Sunny, six days into the incident of another BCL group in Khulna allegedly doing away with JCD leader Raihanul Islam Rabbi, a student of the Khulna Government City College, on January 1.
On March 31, 2009, BCL Dhaka Medical College unit general secretary Abul Kalam Asad Rajib was wasted in an infighting over extortion.
On 13th of the month, the ICS Rajshahi University unit secretary was killed in a turf war with BCL activists on the campus.
In the second week of January that year, Narayanganj City Corporation Ward 2 unit vice president Ibrahim Rony was done in during a BCL factional infighting over establishing dominance in the ward under Narayanganj Sadar police station.
BCL activists of Dewanganj Madrassah in Jamalpur were also blamed for slaying Hafej Ramzan Ali, an ICS activist of the same institution.
During the two-and-a-half-year period, the BCL also harassed and assaulted a large number of teachers of Chittagong and Jahangirnagar universities, Mymensingh Agricultural University, and other educational institutions.
At least 20 teachers of the Bangladesh Agricultural University were wounded when a group of BCL activists attacked them on August 8 last.
The university proctor, Abu Hadi Noor Ali, was the first to come under the attack for handing over to the police two students held on their suspected involvement in mugging in the university's botanical garden.
Proctor Mohammad Akhtar Hossain and assistant proctors Mohammad Monjur Morshed, Mohammad Moinul Islam, and Shipak Krishna Devnath of Chittagong University on August 1, 2011 tendered their resignations in protest against their harassment by groups of Chhatra League activists. However, they later withdrew the resignation letters, following a meeting with the university authorities.
On August 13, 2011, BCL activists foiled a teacher recruitment examination at the SD Degree College in Kotchandpur of Jhenaidah district. The BCL members also beat up the principal of the college, Amal Kumar Ghosh.
Chhatra League activists ransacked the office of CU Alaol Hall provost Hossain Kabir on February 18, 2011 over the issue of distribution of dormitory seats.
On May 22, 2011, BCL activists attacked a chemistry teacher of the Government Bangla College at Mirpur in the capital during an admission test.
Many more skirmishes over tender-grabbing, extortion, and domination, among other issues, and other acts of violence carried out by Chhatra League, Chhatra Dal, Chhatra Shibir, and Chhatra Maitree members rocked different educational institutions including Dhaka, Chittagong, Jahangirnagar, and Jagannath universities, Shahjalal University of Science and Technology of Sylhet, Rajshahi University of Engineering and Technology, Rajshahi Polytechnic Institute, Islamic University of Kushtia, Khulna Medical College, Khulna BL College, Gournadi Government College in Barisal, Narail Government Victoria College, Feni Government College, Government Azizul Hoque College in Bogra, and Chittagong Polytechnic Institute.
When contacted, BCL president HM Badiuzzaman Shohag claimed his organisation did not tolerate any kind of violence on the campus in the past. 'We will not tolerate any violence in future, too.'
He also declared, 'If any one is found guilty of committing any violent act, he or she will be sacked from the organisation and handed over to the law-enforcers.'
According to Badiuzzaman, his organisation will rather help the law enforcement agencies maintain law and order in the country.
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