Dhaka University students blocked the Karwan Bazaar intersection in protest at an alleged assault on fellows by Ansar personnel in the capital on Monday.
The police alleged that the DU students beat up the Ansars and one of them, Ramzan, was sent to Dhaka Medical College Hospital in a critical condition, as he stopped a DU bus when it was violating traffic signal.
The demonstration disrupted traffic on all roads around the busy intersection for about an hour, said Kalabagan police station sub-inspector Imrul Shahed.
The demonstration created long tailbacks on the roads leading to the Farmgate, Shahbagh, FDC and Panthapath areas, witnesses said.
Imrul said that a bus carrying the DU students from the direction of Bangla Motors tried to ignore a traffic signal at the intersection. The Ansar personnel on duty stopped it, triggering a brawl with the students.
The Ansar members then allegedly beat up some students.
Protesting at the assault, the students got off the bus and started demonstrating at the intersection around 1:45pm, witnesses said.
They left the spot after police officials assured the students of looking into the matter.
Shams Miraz, a student travelling on the bus, said that the driver of their bus honked the horn after the bus was stopped by lawmen.
‘Because of the honking, the Ansar personnel misbehaved with us’, he said.
He alleged that the Ansars took five students to a police van, beat them up and took away their mobile phones, which were later recovered.
Police, however, denied the allegation.
Sub-inspector Imrul Shahed said it was rather the students who beat up the Ansars. Among them, Ramzan was rescued and admitted to the DMCH in a critical condition.
‘The policeman stopped the bus for a while as the car of prime minister was going through the street, but the students wanted to go ahead violating
the rule. Then the students sat on the street and made a scuffle with cops,’ DU proctor AM Amzad told.
‘Police detained some of the students, but later they were released on my request,’ he added.
