A special police operation following two days of violent clashes between Chattogram University (CU) students and local residents has led to the arrest of 8 individuals in Jobra village, located in the Fatehpur Union of Hathazari.
The arrested individuals, identified as Imran Hossain (35), Hasan, alias Hasain (22), Russell, alias Kalo Russell (30), Almogir (35), Nazrul Islam (30), Zahed (30), Arman (24), and Didarul Alam (46), were taken into custody during the raid on Wednesday.
Hathazari Model Police Sub-Inspector (SI) Rupen Nath confirmed the arrests, stating that the CU authorities filed a case at the police station on Tuesday, naming 98 individuals while also including nearly 1,000 unidentified suspects.
Hathazari Model Police Station Officer-in-Charge (OC) Abu Kawser Mahmood Hossain confirmed that a special operation had been launched immediately following the filing of the case.
The clashes between CU students and local residents were sparked on Saturday night after an allegation surfaced that a female student had been harassed by a caretaker at a rental house in Jobra.
The altercation escalated into full-fledged violence, with both sides clashing well into the early hours of Sunday. Although the military intervened to restore order that night, fighting resumed the following afternoon.
Students and locals fought with machetes, bricks, and iron rods, resulting in numerous injuries. Among the injured were CU students, teachers, and even the university’s pro-vice chancellor and proctor.
More than 1,500 students were injured in the day-long clashes, with some requiring hospitalisation.
Two of the injured students were taken to an ICU at a private hospital in the city, while 114 others were admitted to Chattogram Medical College Hospital. Of those, 111 students have since been discharged.
In an effort to maintain law and order, Section 144 was imposed in the campus area.
Both army and additional law enforcement personnel have been deployed to ensure the situation remains under control, with both CU authorities and security forces maintaining heightened vigilance across the campus and surrounding areas.
