RU students suspend Dhaka-Rajshahi highway blockade; give ultimatum if demands not met within 9hr

Students of Rajshahi University (RU) suspended a protest launched earlier today (20 November), where they blocked the Dhaka-Rajshahi Highway to demand the immediate arrest of masked assailants who brutally attacked three and abducted two of their peers.

The demonstration, which began around noon as Finance Department students gathered at Kazla Gate, quickly swelled as others joined, positioning themselves on the road and chanting slogans against the miscreants.

At a press briefing at 2pm, Asifur Rahman, a 4th-year student of the Finance department, among the protesting students, said that the programme has been suspended for the next nine hours due to the administration's assurance.

He said that within the next nine hours, the miscreants must be arrested, the Kazla Canteen declared closed, and all the police members of the Kazla Outpost must be removed and punitive action taken. "If these three demands are not met within the stipulated time, the Rajshahi-Dhaka Highway and the railway will be closed."

The protest follows an incident that occurred late last night (19 November) at the "Kazla Canteen" near the university. At around 11pm, a gang of 10 to 15 masked and helmet-wearing individuals, arriving on motorcycles, stormed the restaurant.

The attackers, armed with local weapons including hammers, iron rods, and cleavers, first struck Minhaj of the Theatre Department. They then beat and abducted Finance Department students Al Farabi and Tahmid Ahmed Bakhshi.

Farabi, who had publicly distanced himself from the now-banned Chhatra League during the July Uprising, and Bakhshi were later rescued separately near the Betar Math area and Habibur Rahman Hall, respectively, at around 11:45pm.

All three students showed severe injury marks from the beating they sustained and remain under treatment at Rajshahi Medical College Hospital.

RU Proctor, Professor Mahbubur Rahman, confirmed the incident to The Business Standard, stating that two students were abducted during the attack and were later rescued. "They are currently undergoing treatment. We have instructed the police to quickly identify the miscreants," he said.

The violence had initially sparked an immediate, spontaneous demonstration last night, when students blocked the Dhaka-Rajshahi Highway by setting tyres on fire blocking the road. Today's renewed protest emphasises the students' demand for accountability and security.

Police have confirmed that an investigation into the attack is ongoing.