Chhatra Dal blames SAD, Shibir for Kuet attack
They also said the SAD has been operating in a manner similar to the banned student outfit Chhatra League at Kuet.
The Students Against Discrimination (SAD) and the Islami Chhatrashibir orchestrated yesterday's violence on Khulna University of Engineering & Technology (KUET) campus, leaders of the Jatiyatabadi Chhatra Dal alleged today (19 February), despite the BNP expelling a Jatiotabadi Jubodal leader for attacking Kuet students during the incident.
Speaking at a press conference at Dhaka University's Teacher-Student Center (TSC), Chhatra Dal General Secretary Nasir Uddin said, "Every major fire in Bangladesh starts with a small, short circuit. Yesterday, Student Against Discrimination's unruly mob initiated such an act. The attack was led by Convener Omar Faruq and monitored from the centre by Hasnat Abdullah."
Nasir further claimed that Chhatra Shibir members, fearing exposure after recent mass uprisings, carried out the attack on Chhatra Dal members. According to him, when injured students sought refuge in local shops, the attackers turned on the shopkeepers as well, triggering a violent clash with residents, reports UNB.
Senior Chhatra Dal Vice President Abu Afsan Mohammad Yahya, Vice President Habibul Bashar, Senior Joint General Secretary Shyamal Malum, and local Chhatra Dal leaders from Khulna were present at the press conference.
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Reading out a statement, the Chhatra Dal leaders further alleged that based on testimonies from victims, media reports, and video evidence, the violent incident originated from a procession under the banner of the Students Against Discrimination.
Three Chhatra Dal supporters—Rahul Javed, Ifaz, and Yusuf—were allegedly attacked unprovoked as they passed by the procession after finishing their classes. The video footage shows certain protesters suddenly charging at them, said the BNP student wing leaders.
They said the victims claimed they were chased and assaulted, eventually being driven outside the Kuet gate, where they took refuge in a shop. The shopkeeper was also harassed, prompting some of his local acquaintances to retaliate with armed attacks on the protesters. This led to multiple rounds of clashes, turning the Kuet gate into a battlefield for nearly an hour.
Some local political activists involved in the violence have already been expelled, but they were not affiliated with Chhatra Dal, nor did they act on Chhatra Dal's behalf, claimed the leaders.
The Chhatra Dal leaders emphasised that their supporters were only victims of the violence.
The three attacked students are regular undergraduate students at Kuet. Since no official Chhatra Dal committee has been formed at Kuet, and membership registration has not begun, these students are not formally registered Chatradal activists.
Therefore, labelling this incident a "Chhatra Dal attack" is entirely false and politically motivated, said the leaders in the statement.
They also said the SAD has been operating in a manner similar to the banned student outfit Chhatra League at Kuet.
Kuet's SAD unit engages in various political activities but when Chhatra Dal attempted to sell membership forms, they faced attacks yesterday, the Chhatra Dal leaders said.
