At least nine students from Jagannath University and two colleges were injured on Thursday night when a brawl broke out with the staff of a launch at Sadarghat terminal in Old Dhaka.
The fight occurred when the staff of Barishal-bound launch Sundarban-12 allegedly forced a student to rent a cabin and assaulted him when had refused to give in to their pressure.
The attack prompted a swift and furious response from fellow students, who vandalised the vessel.
The incident seriously disrupted launch operations on the busy Dhaka-Barishal route.
The incident occurred at about 8:00pm on Thursday at Terminal 1, when JnU finance department student Nabil boarded Sundarban-12.
Kotwali police officer-in-charge Moniruzzaman said that the incident stemmed from an argument between a student and the launch staff.
鈥楩our people have been detained so far. No formal complaint has yet been filed. A thorough investigation will be conducted, and legal action will follow,鈥� he added.
The launch staff allegedly forced Nabil to book a cabin in the launch and when he refused, they reportedly beat him. Later, fellow students arrived at the scene as the news spread, but they were also allegedly assaulted by the launch staff.
Students alleged that they came under attack by the followers of local syndicate leader and leaseholder of Sadarghat terminal Sumon Bhuiyan and by the men of Kiron, who was Sumon鈥檚 close associate.