Chhatra Dal activists paint 'Gupto' graffiti at JU protesting attack on Ctg college unit
Wasim Ahmed Anik, member secretary of the JU unit of Chatradal, said that while politics in educational institutions should be transparent and open, a certain group has been using religion for "secret" (gupto) political interests
Activists of the Jahangirnagar University (JU) unit of Bangladesh Jatiotabadi Chatradal (JCD) held a wall-writing campaign across the campus yesterday (22 April), painting the word "Gupto" (secret) to protest a 21 April attack on their fellow activists at Government City College in Chattogram.
During the protest yesterday, JCD members painted the graffiti on various prominent walls and structures, including the Bot Tola road, areas adjacent to Shaheed Salam-Barkat Hall, the Social Sciences Faculty building, the Teacher-Student Centre (TSC), and the Transport Depot.
The campaign follows a violent clash between Chatradal and Islami Chhatra Shibir activists at Government City College the day before yesterday. The violence reportedly broke out after JCD activists altered a campus graffiti that originally read "Campus free of student politics and Chhatra League" by erasing the word "student" and replacing it with "Gupto."
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The resulting clashes left at least 20 people from both sides injured.
Solaiman Sabbir, a student participating in the protest, claimed that certain groups have been attempting to ban student politics since the July Uprising while simultaneously facilitating the emergence of Shibir.
"As a student, their hypocrisy is clear to everyone, which negatively affects the public perception of healthy politics. Through this wall-writing, Chhatra Dal wants to warn them," he said.
Wasim Ahmed Anik, member secretary of the JU unit of Chatradal, said that while politics in educational institutions should be transparent and open, a certain group has been using religion for "secret" (gupto) political interests.
"There is no place for such double standards in Islam. To practice healthy politics in Bangladesh, there is no alternative but to move away from these unhealthy activities," he added.
The fallout of the Chattogram clash has triggered widespread tension across several other major educational institutions.
On the same day as the JU protest, tensions also erupted at Dhaka University's Bijoy Ekattor Hall when JCD activists were allegedly obstructed by a Hall Union representative while attempting a similar mural-writing campaign.
While Shibir leaders, including Ducsu Vice-President Shadik Kayem, have blamed JCD for instigating the Chattogram violence and disrupting the academic environment, Chatradal's central leaders, including General Secretary Nasir Uddin, have defended the "Gupto" campaign as a legitimate response to political intolerance.
