CUET students stage protests as bus kills 2 fellows

A bus goes up in flames on Chattogram–Kaptai Highway during a protest against the death of two students of Chittagong University of Engineering and Technology in a road accident at Raujan in Chattogram on Monday. | New Age photo The students of Chittagong University of Engineering and Technology staged demonstration by blocking Chittagong-Kaptai highway near their institution under Raujan upazila in Chattogram district for about five hours on Monday to protest at the death of their two fellows in an accident on the road at Selina Kader Chowdhury intersection under Rangunia upazila in Chattogram earlier in the day. The deceased students are Shanta Saha, 21, and Towfiq Hossain, 20, both students of CUET’s civil engineering department, said Fazlul Rahman, deputy director (Public Relations) of CUET. He said that another student of the same department, Zakaria Himu, 20, was also injured in the accident that occurred at about 3:00pm. He said that the accident occurred when a speedy bus hit the motorcycle they were riding on while they were taking a U-turn at Selina Kader Chowdhury intersection under Rangunia upazila. Fazlul said that Shanta died on the spot, while Towfiq and Zakaria were brought to Ever Care Hospital, where Towfiq died in the incentive care unit. He said that the injured student was still undergoing treatment at the ICU of the hospital. Rangunia police station officer-in-charge Chandan Kumar said that a bus of Shah Amanat Paribahan hit the students’ motorcycle, and they seized the bus. As the news of the accident reached the campus under Raujan upazila, about five kilometers from the spot of the accident, general students gathered on the Chittagong-Kaptai highway, adjacent to their campus. The students began to block the road at about 4:00pm. They chanted slogans demanding justice for their fellows, seizing the bus that hit the motorcycle, arresting the bus driver and his assistants, and their exemplary punishment. The students also kept three buses confined during their protests. One of the buses was set on fire on the road during the students’ protests. Two other buses were taken to the campus, witnesses said. The students withdrew the blockade at about 9:00pm as their teachers assured them that they would sit with the administration to fulfill the students’ demands.
Published on: 2024-04-22 19:26:36.798156 +0200 CEST