Milestone School jet crash: Education secretary removed amid protests

A committee is being formed to assess the rest of the protesting students' demands, the Chief Advisor's Office says

The government has removed Education Secretary Siddique Zobair from his post in response to the demands of protesting students following the deadly Air Force jet crash at Dhaka's Milestone School and College.

The Press Wing of the Chief Advisor's Office announced the development on Tuesday.

“The education secretary has been removed in line with the students’ demands. At the same time, a committee is being formed to assess the rest of their demands,” said Apurba Jahangir, deputy press secretary to the chief advisor.

Information Advisor Mahfuj Alam also posted about the move on Facebook.

“A committee will soon be formed for a full investigation into the Milestone tragedy. The committee will incorporate the students’ six-point demand into its remit. The education secretary has already been removed. The government is committed to accepting any legitimate demands,” he wrote.

The announcement came after students stormed into the Secretariat on Tuesday to demand the resignations of the education advisor and the education secretary.

Initially, the protesters surrounded the Dhaka education board before heading to the Secretariat around 1:30pm.

On Monday, an F-7 BGI training aircraft of the Air Force crashed onto the Milestone School and College campus during class hours. Many students inside the classrooms suffered fatal burn injuries.

According to the latest official count, 27 people have been killed, while another 70 remain hospitalised.

In the wake of the tragedy, Bangladesh is observing a day of mourning on Tuesday.