Protests Erupt in Dhaka: Mobile Traders and Students Demand Change

Protests Cause Traffic Disruptions in Dhaka

Dhaka: On Sunday, mobile phone traders and students in Bangladesh organized protests that led to significant traffic jams across various areas of the capital, including Science Laboratory, Shahbagh, Agargaon, and near the Education Building, according to local news sources.

The mobile phone traders staged a sit-in outside the Bangladesh Telecommunication Regulatory Commission (BTRC) in Agargaon, advocating for reforms to the National Equipment Identity Register (NEIR) and addressing other concerns. Protesters occupied one side of the main road in front of the BTRC, while others blocked the opposite lane, as reported by the Dhaka Tribune.

Simultaneously, students from several colleges, including Dhaka College and Shaheed Suhrawardy Government College, gathered at Shahbagh intersection, obstructing traffic for approximately an hour.

Undergraduate and postgraduate students from seven colleges marched towards Shikkha Bhaban, urging the issuance of an ordinance for a proposed university. Police set up barricades and closed off roads leading to the Secretariat, further disrupting traffic.

Higher secondary students from Dhaka College and other institutions continued their demonstrations, advocating for the preservation of college autonomy. Their protests on campus and nearby roads contributed to ongoing traffic congestion.

In a related incident last November, members of the left-leaning Democratic Students' Alliance were injured during a human chain protest in Khulna district against attacks on shrines and Sufi sites, as well as demanding the release of Baul singer Abul Sarkar. This occurred on November 26 at Shibbari intersection, where a counter-protest was launched by another group claiming 'insult to religion.'

Eyewitness accounts reported that members of the Democratic Student Alliance faced violence, with their banners being destroyed and set ablaze. Kabir Hossain, the officer-in-charge of Sonadanga Model Police Station, confirmed that the leftist students were attacked by 'students and the general public.'

Sajeeb Khan, the general secretary of the district student union, stated, 'We gathered at Shibbari around 3 PM. Despite police presence, we were subjected to a planned attack around 5 PM.' He alleged that the opposing group included members of the United People's Bangladesh (UPB) and Islami Chhatra Shibir, the student wing of the radical Islamist party Jamaat-e-Islami.