Following the tragic crash of an F-7BGI fighter jet that killed 31 people, including several students, students at Milestone College and in several regional cities demonstrated on Tuesday, placing a six-point demand to the interim government.
Several education board offices were locked, officials were surrounded at the Uttara campus, and calls were made for reforms in military aviation safety and educational accountability.
Protests erupt at Milestone campus
According to eyewitnesses, hundreds of students and concerned citizens gathered outside the gates of Milestone School and College in Uttara, demanding answers following the F-7BGI jet crash that killed several students.
Protesters blocked all college exits, effectively trapping Law Adviser Dr Asif Nazrul, Education Adviser CR Abrar, and the chief adviser’s press secretary inside the campus.
The advisers, initially forced to return to the college after facing roadblocks at Diabari around 5:52pm, took shelter on the second floor of Academic Building 7, with their motorcade stationed inside the girls' campus compound.
Despite the tense standoff outside, internal campus activities returned to a semblance of normalcy, albeit under heavy police, RAB, and intelligence surveillance.
Earlier in the morning, students had planned a peaceful sit-in at 9am. However, an army unit stationed at the Diabari roundabout used loudspeakers around 9:15am to declare a ban on gatherings or protests in the area.
Defying the order, students began rallying outside the school gates around 10:30am, coinciding with the arrival of the advisers. The crowd quickly surrounded them, prompting emotional chants and demands.
The six demands
The students presented a six-point charter:
- Full disclosure of the names and identities of the deceased
- A verified and complete list of the injured
- Compensation for the families of all victims
- Immediate decommissioning of outdated and risky training aircraft and their replacement with modern, safer alternatives
- A comprehensive overhaul of Air Force training methods and facilities to ensure humane and safe practices
- A public and unconditional apology from military personnel involved in alleged assaults on teachers
Dialogue and reassurance
In an attempt to calm tensions, the two advisers and the press secretary later entered a conference room on the ground floor of Building 5 for discussions with five to seven student representatives, as hundreds of protesters continued chanting outside.
Emerging just before 1pm, Dr Asif Nazrul addressed the students: “Your demands are entirely legitimate. On behalf of the government, I assure you that we will meet every one of them. Please have faith in us.”
He added that he was there not just as a government official but as a guardian moved by grief.
The interim government’s press wing later issued a statement supporting all six student demands. Nevertheless, demonstrations persisted outside the college, prompting the advisers to re-enter the campus for safety. By the afternoon, the advisers and press secretary once again attempted to leave the campus, but were met with another blockade by students at Diabari crossing.
Clashes at the Secretariat
In a separate but related escalation, a large group of students stormed the Secretariat in the capital around 2:30pm, demanding the resignations of the education adviser and the senior education secretary. Protesters first rallied in front of the main gate before pushing inside through Gate 1 around 3:40pm, chanting slogans such as "Shame, shame!" and "Fake advisers must go!”
Law enforcement, including police and army personnel, responded with stick charges, sound grenades, and tear gas to disperse the students, leading to violent clashes. During the clash, several students were injured and rushed to Dhaka Medical College Hospital
Meanwhile, law enforcers were reportedly injured by stones thrown by students.
Later in the afternoon, around 4pm, Information Adviser Mahfuj Alam confirmed via a Facebook post that both the Education Secretary Siddiq Zubair had been withdrawn.
5 board offices locked
Simultaneous to events in Dhaka, students in at least five divisions—Chittagong, Sylhet, Comilla, Jessore, and Dinajpur—protested in front of regional education board offices, demanding the resignation of Adviser CR Abrar. Protesters locked the gates of these offices and blockaded major roads.
In Dinajpur, demonstrators padlocked the board’s main gate around 3pm and halted traffic along the Dinajpur-Dhaka highway. Police reinforcements were deployed to control the situation.
In Comilla, a rally from Pubali Chattar marched to the education board headquarters and locked the main gate. The lock was only removed after an hour and a half. Similar scenes unfolded in Jessore, where students also besieged the Deputy Commissioner’s office and submitted a memorandum.
Protests at the Sylhet and Chittagong education boards followed the same pattern, with roads blocked and rallies intensifying through the afternoon.