Police charge baton to clear last remaining student agitators from streets

Police have clubbed to disperse the last batch of private university students who blocked steers through Thursday demanding the withdrawal of VAT on tuition fees and crippling Dhaka in the process.

Around 10pm on Thursday police resorted to a baton-charge to remove agitators from the Mirpur Road at Dhanmondi’s Sukrabad.

All Dhaka roads were freed of sit-ins after the late evening action at Sukrabad but traffic in some parts was yet to be fully normal after a day of chaos.

Earlier, vehicles began moving again soon after the student protesters dispersed from Norda's Jamuna Future Park, the Gulshan-Mohakhali Road, Rampura Bridge, and Shahjadpur.

Although most students cleared the roads after a National Board of Revenue (NBR) clarification that the universities, instead of the students, will pay VAT, one group persisted with the blockade on Dhanmondi 27 road.

Students stood divided with some of those belonging to Daffodil and other universities wanted to continue their sit-in through the night.

Around 8pm, rival groups clashed over carrying on the agitation, encouraging motorists to get their vehicles rolling.

But the glimmer of hope snapped within five minutes as a group of students came back to block the road.

Soon about 50-60 baton-wielding men chased the agitators at around 9pm, said bdnews24.com Senior Correspondent Liton Haider from the spot.

The agitators alleged the attackers were members of the pro-government Chhatra League, an affiliate of the ruling Awami League.

In the running battle that continued for some time, the agitating students blocked a road near Sukrabad.

Around 9.45pm, Tejgaon division Deputy Commissioner Biplab Kumar Sarkar led a police force in chasing away the demonstrators. A group of men with sticks in hand were seen behind police.

The agitating students threw stones at the law enforcers, who resorted to caning to scatter the agitators.

A student, badly bruised and bleeding, was seen lying at the spot when others had all left.

Police claimed Biplab Sarkar had suffered an injury on his hand after being struck by a stone thrown by an agitator.

Private university students had been protesting a 7.5 percent VAT ever since it was proposed in the budget for the 2015-16 financial year.

They said the move betrayed a mindset that viewed education as a commodity.

The discontent came to a head when the agitating students and police clashed on Wednesday, bringing the students out on the streets on Thursday.