A violent clash between two student groups at Dr Mahbubur Rahman Mollah College (DRMC) in Dhaka’s Demra area has resulted in widespread damage, with over a hundred students injured.
Local residents are still in fear in the area, and a large number of police, military, and Border Guard Bangladesh (BGB) forces have been deployed to restore order.
After visiting the college on Monday afternoon, Mohammad Saleh Uddin, the Deputy Commissioner (DC) of the Wari Division of Dhaka Metropolitan Police (DMP), said that the attack was not accidental.
He said it was a planned attack by terrorists disguised as students to disrupt law and order at the college. The destruction was described as highly reprehensible, and police believe a vested interest group may be involved. Those responsible will be brought to justice within 24 hours.
Police have indicated that vested interest groups were behind the clashes, and investigations into recent incidents of violence, looting, and destruction at various educational institutions is underway.
Upon visiting the college campus, it was observed that most of the windows and doors on the front and back of the college's two 12-story buildings were broken.
The entire campus was littered with shattered glass. Inside the college, classrooms, offices, library, cash counters, the principal's office, lifts, and toilets were all damaged. Student certificates and important documents were destroyed, and two science labs on the 8th and 9th floors were also vandalized, spreading chemical gases throughout the building.
The classrooms on the ground floor were found with broken furniture and equipment. Even the ceiling fans were bent, and CCTV cameras were found damaged.
Earlier in the day, around 10am, students from Suhrawardy College, armed with sticks, gathered in groups on their campus. They later marched to the front of Kabi Nazrul College. When the principal of Nazrul College called for calm over the loudspeaker, students from both colleges began shouting slogans and engaged in a violent clash.
To control the situation, a large number of police, BGB forces, army, RAB, and APBN personnel were deployed.
Damage to DRMC
According to the principal of Dr Mahbubur Rahman Mollah College, Obaidullah Noyon, the college suffered damage estimated at around Tk70 crore due to the students’ attacks.
Speaking to the media on Monday at around 3pm, the principal said: "We never imagined that our college, one of the top ten colleges in Dhaka, would be turned into a ruin. Students have destroyed everything. A group of students from Suhrawardy College, Kabi Nazrul College, and some outsiders jointly attacked us," he said.
The principal revealed that almost every window in the 12-story building was destroyed, and various equipment such as five lifts, computers, science labs, over 300 fans, around 30 laptops, and numerous other valuable items were looted. The total damage amounted to Tk60 to Tk70 crore.
Obaidullah Noyon also accused a Facebook group named "UCB" of inciting the attack and conspiracy.
He criticized law enforcement for failing to intervene during the attack, despite their presence since the morning. "While law enforcement agencies were present, they only watched from a distance and did not take action," he added.
Earlier, around 10am, students from different departments of Suhrawardy College gathered in the campus with sticks.
They later marched to the front of Kabi Nazrul College. When the principal of Nazrul College urged them to calm down through the microphone, the students started chanting "Fake, fake."
They then continued their protest march and attacked DRMC, leading to a confrontation with the college’s students.
The incident follows a protest program on Sunday in response to the death of DRMC student Abhijit in the National Medical College of Old Dhaka.
During this program, students from DRMC and several other colleges carried out large-scale vandalizm at the National Medical College and nearby Suhrawardy College.
As a result, the honors first-year exams at Suhrawardy College were postponed.
