The Dhaka University senate elections held on Saturday amid stray incidents of clashes between Bangladesh Chhatra League and Jatiyatabadi Chhatra Dal – students’ bodies of the two main political parties.
The clashes left at least five registered graduates injured including the DU International Hall Provost and Senate Member Prof Lutfar Rahman. He received injuries to his arm when he had gone to pacify the warring parties.
Among the injured were Anabil Roy of peace and conflict department, Sharif of Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman Hall and Hasan of AF Rahman Hall.
Witnesses said the clash broke out when the Chhatra Dal activists had begun to chant provocative slogans.
The voting for the second parliament election of the university by its registered graduates started from 9am and continued until 5pm at the TSC, Senate building and central playground of the university.
The number of voters was around 20,000 in the three centres at DU while around 14,000 earlier cast their votes in 43 centres across the country.
The DU senate committee comprises 105 members, of which 25 are chosen by the registered graduate students of the university. The results would be published tomorrow.
Awami League-backed Chhatra League and BNP-backed Chhatra Dal were in a tense standoff on the campus since morning. Chhatra League supported Ganatantrik Oikya Parishad while the other favoured Jatiyatabadi Parishad.
Witnesses said scuffles broke out between the two groups at the university central playground around 11:15am when BNP acting secretary general Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir went there to cast his vote.
Around 12:15pm, the two groups also clashed with one another on the senate building premises.
Chhatra League activists beat up Azizul Haque Zeon, a Dhanmondi unit Chhatra Dal activist. They also beat up Chhatra Dal activist Muhibullah, also a graduate student of sociology department, in the afternoon.
DU acting proctor Amzad Ali termed the on-campus clash an “isolated” incident which occurred from a “simple misunderstanding.”
“The university authorities and law enforcers were trying to maintain a peaceful voting atmosphere,” he said.
However, DU Chhatra League President Mehedi Hasan termed the senate election free and fair.
He also denied the allegation of attack on Chhatra Dal members by the Chhatra League activists.
Chhatra League central committee’s acting secretary Shamsul Kabir Rahat blamed the Chhatra Dal for the clashes. He claimed that the Chhatra League activists had followed democratic system during the Senate polls.
Rahat said they had supported Ganatantrik Oikya Parishad as it held fast to pro-liberation ideals.
A tense situation was prevailing on the campus in the wake of clashes that occurred intermittently throughout the day.
Jatiyatabadi Parishad, the BNP-backed panel, alleged that many voters who cast their votes on Saturday had also exercised their franchise in the 43 voting centres outside Dhaka.
At a press conference held at the National Press Club last evening, they claimed that the Awami League-baked panel had launched the attack on some of their men and harassed many of them including a woman.
