Students block on Rangpur-Dhaka highway demanding advisers from north 

A group of students blocked the Rangpur-Dhaka highway on Wednesday (13 November) to press for the inclusion of advisers from the northern region in the interim government.

The protesters brought out a procession around 12:30pm from Rangpur's Lalbagh area, parading through the Modern intersection before reaching the highway. They concluded their demonstration after an hour.

Coordinators of the Anti-Discrimination Student Movement from Rangpur, including Imran Ahmed, Ashfaq Ahmed, Nahid Hasan Khandker, Imtiaz Ahmed, Yasir Arafat, Saiful Islam, and Shariful Islam, were present at the demonstration.

The students demanded the inclusion of "qualified individuals" from the northern region in the government's Advisory Council, specifically naming Akhtar Hossain – a former social services secretary of the Dhaka University Central Students' Union (Ducsu) and the current member secretary of the National Citizen Committee – as a potential candidate.

Protesters chanted slogans such as "End discrimination" and "We want to see Akhtar Hossain as adviser."

Amid the ongoing controversy regarding the appointment of advisers, the combined private university unit of the Anti-Discrimination Student Movement has demanded that the government form a committee to select new members for the Advisory Council. 

The proposed committee should include representatives from political parties, public universities, private universities, National University, Dhaka University-affiliated colleges, and madrasas to ensure a fair selection of advisers. 

The students also called for inclusion of those who are accepted by political parties, who contributed to the independence of Bangladesh, and agricultural scientists as advisers.

These demands were presented at a press conference titled "Position of Combined Private University Students Considering the Overall Situation of Bangladesh 2.0," held at the National Press Club. 

They presented a total of nine demands, including compensation and rehabilitation for the families of those injured or killed during the mass uprising, which led to the ouster of the Sheikh Hasina government in August.

Liaison Committee ineffective

During a press conference on the night of the interim government's oath-taking on 8 August, Nahid Islam said the advisers were selected based on recommendations from the Liaison Committee, which was working on the framework of the interim government.

Arif Sohail, the general secretary of the Anti-Discrimination Student Movement, told TBS, after an emergency meeting of the platform last night,  "At this moment, the Liaison Committee is ineffective. However, we have decided that student representatives must be involved in the government's decision-making process, and that is necessary. We will do something to ensure this participation."

At a press briefing after the meeting, the platform's chief organiser, Hannan Masud, said, "From an organisational standpoint, we have decided to maintain a dialectical relationship with the government. We will support good initiatives and stand by them to help correct any mistakes."

Several meeting participants told TBS that they discussed key issues, including the appointment of advisers, banning politics of party-affiliated student bodies, holding student council elections, building relations with the Citizens' Committee, expanding the organisation locally, and including student representatives in government decision-making.

Masud also announced plans to form an executive committee to make the platform more dynamic. Several cells will be set up to improve coordination with the public, and the convening committee will be fully formed in one to one-and-a-half months.

'No division' 

Addressing concerns about reported division within the organisation, Masud said, "There is no division within the Anti-Discrimination Student Movement. Coordinators from across the country held a cordial discussion for four hours. We are determined to work with the commitment of a mass uprising. Nearly 80 members attended the meeting."

Arif Sohail added that the discussion mainly focused on organisational discipline and forming local committees. "No immediate action plan is being announced from the meeting," he said.

Also talking to TBS, Spokesperson Umama Fatema said, "There will be an organising committee besides the executive committee, which will be formed soon."

The platform initially formed a 65-member coordination team on 8 July, which included 23 coordinators. On 3 August, this was expanded to a 158-member committee. However, on 22 October, the 158-member team was dissolved and replaced by a new four-member central convening committee.

Northern protests 

On 11 November, the Anti-Discrimination Student Movement threatened a "North Bengal Blockade" if their demand for representation in the interim government was not met. 

Key coordinators Akhtar Hossain and Sarjis Alam urged the chief adviser to appoint at least ten members from North Bengal to the Advisory Council.

At Wednesday's Rangpur demonstration, students accused the interim government of regional discrimination, highlighting that 13 of the current advisers were from Chattogram, while none were from Rangpur or Rajshahi divisions. 

They warned that such practices would worsen regional disparities and threatened further action with a larger blockade if their demands were not addressed.

Their demands included appointing two to four advisers from each of the two North Bengal divisions, eliminating regional bias in government appointments, and requiring public weekly updates from advisers. 

They also called for the exclusion of controversial advisers and those not supportive of the July Revolution, as well as consulting North Bengal's Anti-Discrimination Student Movement leaders in policy decisions.

Sarjis Alam expressed his outrage on Facebook, stating, "Thirteen advisers from one division, yet none from the 16 districts of Rangpur and Rajshahi divisions in North Bengal! Moreover, allies of murderer Hasina are among the advisers!"

At the protest, the students threatened to sever Rangpur division's communications with the rest of the country if their demands went unaddressed. They announced plans to submit a memorandum to the chief adviser and prepare for further actions if necessary.