Police clash with protesters in Dhaka following attack on indigenous students

Dhaka, January 16 – Police clashed with students today as they marched in protest against yesterday’s violent attack on indigenous students and activists outside the National Curriculum and Textbook Board (NCTB) building.

Authorities deployed water cannons, sound grenades, and baton charges to disperse the crowd, which included leaders and activists from leftist organizations.

The protesters, who had gathered under the banner “Aggrieved Student-People” at the Raju Memorial Sculpture at Dhaka University around 12:30 PM, were demanding justice for the victims of the attack and the arrest of those responsible.

The protestors were en route to the Secretariat when they were met with police resistance at the Shikkha Bhaban intersection.

Shahbagh Police Station Inspector (Investigation) Md Asaduzzaman stated, “When the protesters, mainly leftist organization leaders and activists, reached the intersection, the police blocked their way. However, they breached the barricades and continued their march towards the Secretariat.”

Witnesses reported that police responded by using a water cannon and firing sound grenades to break up the protest.

The latest developments come in the wake of yesterday’s brutal clashes, in which at least thirteen indigenous students and human rights activists were left severely injured by a fanatical group opposing the inclusion of the term “Adivasi” (indigenous) and its accompanying graffiti image in a textbook.

The radical group “Students for Sovereignty,” attacked at the NCTB building yesterday, also issued five key demands, including punishment for those responsible for including the word “indigenous”.

The escalating tensions epitomize a profound and volatile struggle for the recognition and preservation of indigenous rights, with protestors levying grave accusations against the authorities for orchestrating or enabling a calculated campaign to stifle their voices and efface their cultural identities.

This attack lays bare the schism between impassioned advocates for the sanctity of indigenous heritage and the insidious forces intent on its erasure in Bangladesh.