Students of Dhaka College, City College clash again

Students from Dhaka College and City College were locked in a violent clash again in the capital's Science Lab area on Tuesday.
The conflict is believed to arise from a trifling matter, but the exact cause could not be known immediately. The students of the two institutions engaged in clashes on a number of occasions in the past.
In the morning, students from City College gathered under the footbridge near Science Lab while Dhaka College students assembled in front of the Teachers' Training College. According to the police and eyewitnesses, the fighting began at around 11:00 am. Both groups started throwing bricks and began to attack one another with sticks.
Later it escalated and continued until around 3:00 pm. Police baton-charged the students and fired tear gas shells and sound grenades and finally brought the situation under control. The students left the area at around 3:30 pm. During the fight, traffic on both sides of the road came to a halt, causing suffering for commuters.
Earlier on Monday, a Dhaka College student was reportedly assaulted in Dhanmondi area by a group of unidentified youths, one of whom was believed to be a City College student. They claimed that the clash was the result of longstanding animosity. The injured student was admitted to a hospital.
Officer-in-charge of New Market Police Station Mohsin Uddin said that the longstanding tensions between students of the two institutions result from various issues. He said that additional police forces were deployed.
Meanwhile, the authorities of Dhaka City College announced the closure of the institution for Wednesday and Thursday in an effort to avoid further clash. Acting Principal of the college Mobarak Hossain spoke to the students at around 3:20 pm.
He requested the students to shun the path of violence and return to their respective houses. Attacks were carried out on the infrastructure of the college, he said. The principal called upon the authorities concerned to investigate the incident and reach a solution.

talhabinhabib@yahoo.com