At least 50 Jagannath university students were injured and 25 admitted to Dhaka Medical College Hospital (DMCH) after police intercepted them while they were advancing towards state guest house Jamuna, official residence of Chief Advisor at around 11-45am on Wednesday.
Police dispersed the Jagannath university protesters once, but they regrouped and returned to continue demonstrating, ignoring the heat and the afternoon downpour on Wednesday. They are continuing their agitation and sit-in protest rally at Kakrail Mosque intersection to press home three-point demands.
The students, who were accompanied by teachers throughout the day, vowed to continue protests until the Chief Advisor’s Office sends words of assurance.
The three-point demand of the students include: implementing housing allowance for 70% of Jagannath University students starting from the 2025–26 fiscal year, approving the proposed full budget for the same period without any cuts, and initiating the university’s second campus project as a priority development project in the next ECNEC meeting.
Information Advisor Mahfuz Alam arrived at the ‘Jamuna’ square after 10.00 pm and addressed the protesting students that, “The chief advisor will soon hold a direct meeting with the university administration. Efforts will be made to reach a reasonable solution through discussions regarding the student’s three-point demand.”
He added, “The government always respects logical demands and is willing to listen to any democratic movement.”
However, while he began to speak, a tense moment created there and the protesters started chanting “Fake, fake” slogans from the crowd.
Later, speaking to journalists, the advisor claimed the attack was “pre-planned” and blamed an infiltrating group trying to sabotage the student movement, which sparked further controversy among protesters.
Around midnight, JCD (Jatiyatabadi Chhatra Dal) leader Shamsul Arefin, speaking on behalf of the protesters, expressed regret over the attack but distanced the student body from the incident, calling it isolated. He criticized the advisor’s statement for lacking clarity and vowed to continue the protest until a formal government response is issued.
Earlier in the day, police used tear gas, sound grenades, and water cannons to disperse students marching toward ‘Jamuna’. Despite clashes, students regrouped at the protest site, joined by several faculty members in solidarity. Around 8pm on Wednesday, students and teachers of the university located in the capital’s Old Dhaka were seen protesting in front of the chief justice’s residence near the Kakrail Mosque intersection.
When the procession approached Gulistan Golap Shah Mazar, police intervened, and a scuffle ensued.
The protesters then tried to break through police barricades, prompting law enforcers to swing batons at them and later lob tear gas shells, stun grenades and blast water to fend off the protesters. The protesters subsequently retreated to the Matsya Bhaban intersection before returning for a sit-in at the Kakrail Mosque intersection.
The Dhaka Metropolitan Police (DMP) on 10th May has imposed a ban on public gatherings, processions, public meetings, and rallies in the areas surrounding the chief adviser’s official residence Jamuna and the Bangladesh Secretariat. In a notice issued by DMP Commissioner SM Sazzat Ali, the restriction has been imposed under Section 29 of the Dhaka Metropolitan Police Ordinance, 1976, to ensure the security of the Chief Adviser.