Students Against Discrimination and National Citizen Party activists postponed their Wednesday鈥檚 demonstration in Chattogram till noon today after hours of laying siege to the Patiya police station and blockade of Chattogram-Cox鈥檚 Bazar highway.
The postponement came after the police bowed to the demonstrators鈥� demand on Wednesday afternoon with the demonstrators threatening to block the Chattogram city if their demands were not fulfilled within the deadline.
The demonstration started in the morning and went on for hours on Wednesday, following two rounds of聽 clashes with the police on the previous night.
They demonstrators demanded justice for alleged police assaults and the removal of three police officers鈥擯atiya police officer-in-charge Abu Zayed Md Nazmun Noor, its sub-inspector Asadur Rahman, and additional superintendent of police for Patiya circle under the Chittagong district police Md Ariful Islam.
鈥榃e have listened to their demands,鈥� said Sanjay Sarkar, Chattogram Range additional deputy inspector general, adding that decision would be taken regarding the demands.聽
He, however, said that the matter regarding the demand for removal of the additional police super lay with the home ministry and added that they would communicate the matter to the ministry.
NCP Chattogram organiser Zubairul Hasan Arif said, 鈥楾he DIG has assured us of meeting our demands. If action is not taken by 12 noon tomorrow (Thursday), we will block Chattogram聽city.鈥�
The unrest stemmed from a Tuesday night incident during a candlelight vigil commemorating July Mass Uprising Day, when the activists apprehended Dipankar Dey, reportedly a leader of the Rangamati district unit of Bangladesh Chhatra League, banned student organisation of Awami League, and handed him over to the Patiya police.
Tensions flared when the police refused to detain Dipankar saying that he had no case against him.
According to protest leaders, the police not only rejected their appeal for action but also assaulted them causing two confrontations, one at around 9:30pm and another at around 11:30pm, leaving at least 19 people injured, including student activists and law enforcement personnel.
Patiya police officer-in-charge Abu Zayed Md Nazmun Noor also confirmed to the media that four of his officers sustained injuries during the scuffle.
At about 9:30am Wednesday, hundreds of protesters besieged the main entrance of the Patiya police station. At about 10:40am, some of the protesters began blocking the critical Chattogram-Cox鈥檚 Bazar highway. Both the siege of the police station blockade of the highway were withdrawn at about 7:00pm.
Protesters were seen chanting slogans against police misconduct and calling for OC Nazmun Noor鈥檚 immediate removal. By noon, the agitation intensified as demonstrators moved to the Patiya bypass and set tires ablaze on the highway, completely halting vehicular movement.
The blockade disrupted connectivity between Chattogram and several southern districts, including Cox鈥檚 Bazar and Bandarban, causing a tailback several kilometres long. Commuters were forced to abandon vehicles and walk on foot.
By 3:00pm, the protest spread to the city where protesters began a sit-in in front of the office of the deputy inspector general of Chattogram Range in Khulshi area. The sit-in was withdrawn at about 6:30pm.聽
As they blocked Zakir Hossain Road around 3:30pm, traffic in the area became severely disrupted, amplifying public suffering.
Riyad, NCP鈥檚 city organiser, denounced the police action, saying, 鈥榃e peacefully handed over a corrupt student leader to the police, yet they chose to attack us instead. The police have become a political shield. We are demanding urgent institutional reform and accountability.鈥�
He added that if the DIG continued to ignore the protesters鈥� repeated call for dialogue, any future escalation would be the DIG鈥檚 sole responsibility.
A senior official at the Chattogram Range DIG office said that they were reviewing the matter with due seriousness.
The police, meanwhile, denied allegations of assault. They claimed that students exhibited unruly behaviour on the police premises, saying that injuries occurred when protesters fell while fleeing a dispersal attempt.
Despite repeated attempts, OC Nazmun Noor could not be reached for comment.
Chattogram district superintendent of police Md Saiful Islam Santu said, 鈥榃e are assessing their demands and hope to reach a peaceful resolution soon.鈥�
The Students Against Discrimination on Wednesday issued a statement, condemning the alleged police assault. They demanded a fair investigation and punishment of the personnel involved in the assault.
