Police block protesting students outside Shikkha Bhaban

Protesting Higher Secondary Certificate (HSC) examinees gathered in front of Shikkha Bhaban in Dhaka on Wednesday afternoon, where they were stopped by a police barricade. The students reached the area at around 4:30 pm as part of their previously announced “Long March to the Ministry of Education” programme.

Earlier, the protesting students blocked roads at Uttara, Science Lab, Mirpur-10 and ECB Chattar in Dhaka as part of their three-point demand campaign. At around 3:00 pm, students demonstrating at Science Lab left the road and began marching towards the Ministry of Education at the Secretariat.

Members of law enforcement were seen maintaining a cautious presence at the front and alongside the procession. After the students cleared the roads, traffic movement gradually returned to normal on Science Lab, Mirpur Road, Elephant Road and routes towards Shahbagh.

The protests came a day after students held demonstrations across the capital on Tuesday, demanding, among other things, the resignation of the education minister. As part of their continued programme on Wednesday, students again blocked the Dhaka-Mymensingh Highway in front of BNS Center in Uttara, the Mirpur-10 intersection and ECB Chattar, disrupting traffic in those areas.

At the same time, students gathered at the Science Lab intersection, occupying the road and staging demonstrations while chanting slogans.

The protesting students’ three demands are:

* Suspension of HSC and equivalent examinations until the disaster situation returns to normal;
* A re-examination opportunity for students who could not attend the July 13 exam due to adverse weather conditions; and
* The resignation of Education Minister A N M Ehsanul Haque Milon.

The students said they launched the movement in protest against holding HSC and equivalent examinations during severe weather conditions and against the minister’s reported remark referring to examinees as “farm chickens.”

On Tuesday, HSC candidates blocked roads in Dhaka, Chattogram, Barishal and several other districts across the country as part of their protest. In the capital, students blocked the Science Lab intersection at around 11:00 am, causing disruption on several major roads.

Another group of students gathered in front of BNS Center in Uttara at around the same time and blocked the Dhaka-Mymensingh Highway, leading to severe traffic congestion in the area.