Three students of Rajshahi University were injured on Wednesday night after a group of masked armed men attacked them near the university鈥檚 Kazla Gate, prompting fellow students to block the Dhaka鈥揜ajshahi highway protesting at the attack.
The injured were Al Farabi and Tahmid Ahmed Bakhshi, both 2021鈥�22 session students of the finance department, and Md Minhaz, a 2023鈥�24 session student of the theatre department.
Farabi, who had resigned from the banned Bangladesh Chhatra League during the student-led July mass uprising that forced former ruler Sheikh Hasina to flee the country, was undergoing treatment at Rajshahi Medical College Hospital.
Minhaz received primary treatment at the same hospital, while Tahmid was treated at the university medical centre.
Witnesses said 10鈥�15 unidentified men riding motorcycles, wearing masks and helmets, and armed with rods, hammers and sharp weapons, stormed into a restaurant while the trio was having dinner with others.
The attackers stabbed Minhaz in the shoulder and forcibly took away Farabi and Tahmid.
Farabi was later found near the Binodpur Betar field, while Tahmid was left near Habibur Rahman Hall around 11:45pm, both with multiple injuries.
Tahmid told reporters that the masked men dragged him outside the restaurant and beat him mercilessly.
鈥楾hey pick me on a rickshaw and took me to a place near Suiter Mor, where they asked several questions including my name, department, home village and my involvement with BCL politics,鈥� he said.
鈥楢t one point, one of the masked attackers received a phone call saying they had caught the person they were actually searching for. Only then did they drop me near Habibur Rahman Hall,鈥� he added, noting that he could not recognise any of the assailants as all of them had their faces covered.
Shankar K Biswas, in-charge of the RMCH emergency department, said that two students were taken to the hospital on Wednesday night.
鈥楤oth had multiple injury marks. One of them, who required six stitches, was admitted, while the other was released,鈥� he said.
Following the incident, students blocked and started a fire on the Dhaka鈥揜ajshahi highway near Kazla Gate around 12:30am, protesting at the attack and demanding immediate arrest of the perpetrators.
On Thursday, students again blocked the highway for nearly two hours from 12:00pm to 2:00pm with a three-point demand.
Their demands are arresting the attackers within 24 hours, receiving explanation of Kazla Police Outpost officers over their 鈥榠naction鈥�, and closure of Kazla Canteen for allegedly deleting CCTV footage.
鈥楽uch a major attack happened right beside the police outpost, yet police did nothing,鈥� said protesting student Asifur Rahman.
He alleged that the canteen authorities had also destroyed evidence by deleting CCTV recordings.
鈥業f the attackers are not arrested within 24 hours, we will go for a tougher movement,鈥� he warned.
Later, the agitating students postponed their demonstration after the university administration and the police administration assured them of meeting the demands.
Rajshahi University proctor Professor Mahbubor Rahman said he asked the law enforcers to take stern action against the perpetrators.
Abdul Malek, officer-in-charge of Motihar Police Station, said that they had already identified five suspects and were trying to detain them.
