Students of Ideal, Dhaka colleges reach peace agreement; City College missing from truce effort

Students of Dhaka College and Ideal College, who frequently face off in clashes, signed a peace agreement at a ceremony today (9 November).

The agreement was facilitated by Officer-in-Charge (OC) of New Market Police Station AKM Mahfuzul Haque, who organised a mediation session at the Dhaka College auditorium at about 11:45am to ease tensions between the three institutions that have long disrupted academic activities and caused public inconvenience in the area.

However, students of City College did not join the initiative.

More than 200 students from the Dhaka and Ideal colleges attended, along with Dhaka College Principal Prof AKM Elias, Ideal College Acting Principal Muhammad Rezwanul Haque, teachers from both institutions, and police officials.

OC Mahfuzul said, "Since joining New Market Thana, I have observed that students of Dhaka College, Ideal College, and City College get into fights every few days."

"They themselves do not even know why they fight," he said, adding that it often stems from trivial incidents.

"Later, after speaking to them, I saw that they were willing to compromise among themselves. That is why today's arrangement was made. I hope this bond will be maintained."

On City College's absence, he said, "They were also invited to attend. But they did not come due to some unavoidable reason. They will be brought in later. A festive mood will be created again."

At the beginning of the event, Dhaka College students welcomed the Ideal College students with flowers, and the students of the two colleges embraced one another.

Ideal College students also brought sweets, which were distributed among the Dhaka College students, creating a celebratory atmosphere.

Israfil Mohim, a twelfth-grade student of Dhaka College, said, "Over the past few years, students of Dhaka College and Ideal College have repeatedly come face-to-face over some isolated incidents. Our teachers arranged this bonding event to help move from confrontation to a good relationship. From now on, we will not get involved in any kind of quarrel but will study and work together to build the country."

Toufiq Ahmed Fahim, a first-year student of Ideal College, said, "Our long-standing difficult relationship has turned into a good one starting today. The issues arose from misunderstandings. From now on, this bond will last. We will still have competition, but in studies and results."

Ideal College Acting Principal Muhammad Rezwanul Haque said, "Students of the three colleges blame one another for the fights. Actually, students troll each other on social media, and that is what starts the trouble. Mobile phones must be used properly, avoiding negative aspects. I hope the unity established today will continue."

At this point, he appealed to the Dhaka College principal to withdraw a case filed against Ideal College.

Dhaka College Principal Professor AKM Elias said, "Today is a very happy day for us. During the July Uprising, we saw how students of the three colleges united in a movement and drove out fascism. But then hostility developed between them again. These repeated incidents have caused inconvenience to commuters and local businesses. We needed to get out of this situation, and that is why the New Market Thana OC took this initiative."

He added, "We want to maintain harmony. We hope there will be no more conflicts in the coming days. And since the conflict has ended, I request the OC to settle the case."

Notably, repeated altercations among students of Dhaka College, City College, and Ideal College often escalated into major clashes in the past, causing difficulties for law enforcement and affecting the reputation of the institutions. The incidents also created disruptions for commuters in the surrounding areas.