Citizens’ Committee, Student Movement clash in Pirojpur over leaflet distribution for July proclamation

Members of the National Citizen's Committee and the Anti-Discrimination Student Movement clashed in Pirjojpur today (12 January) over leaflet distribution to promote the July uprising proclamation.

The incident took place at the Pirojpur Town Club field in the afternoon, according to members of the Student Movement and the police.

"The two groups got into an altercation over leaflet distribution. The police have brought the situation under control," said Pirojpur Sadar Police Station Officer-in-Charge (OC) Abdus Sobhan.

However, Student Movement leader Moin Uddin alleged that members of the Citizen's Committee, led by its member Musabbir Mahmud Sany, who is also a former activist of the banned Bangladesh Chhatra League (BCL), attacked them.

"BCL leader Musabbir Mahamud Sany was not with the Anti-Discrimination Student Movement from the start. They [Sany and his associates] joined the movement at the last stage and tried to create chaos within the platform. He later formed the

National Citizens' Committee unit without us. Today, he attacked us," said Moin.

Another Student Movement leader Shahnewaz Ovi alleged that Sany has been sheltering BCL activists.

"They [Sany and others] announced the Citizens' Committee on their own without including those of us, who waged the student movement from the very start. They only gave us 400 leaflets on the July uprising proclamation to distribute. They kept the rest to themselves," said Ovi.

However, rejecting the allegations brought against him, Sany said, "A handful of people are trying to obstruct our [Citizens' Committee] activities using the name of the Student Movement."

Following the clash, the Pirojpur unit of the Student Movement dismissed the National Citizen's Committee from campaigning in favour of the proclamation.

Sany, along with Shahriar Amin Sagor, who on 16 August announced his resignation as president of Pirojpur Ward-8 Chhatra League and joined the Student Movement, has been accused of causing discord among the Student Movement.

Earlier on 16 September, at a views-exchange meeting of the coordinators of the Anti-Discrimination Student Movement, both of the former BCL men claimed to be coordinators of the student platform that spearheaded the July uprising. 

Several members of the Student Movement refused to accept them as coordinators, which resulted in a clash and left the platform divided into two factions with Sagar and Sany leading one of them.

The latest clash between the two platforms in Pirojpur comes just a day after an internal clash among Anti-Discrimination Student Movement's Mirpur, Dhaka unit which left nine injured. 

The injured received primary treatment at the emergency department of Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman Medical University (BSMMU) and were later discharged, reports UNB.

The incident took place at around 8:30pm on 10 January at the central office of the organisation, located in Rupayan Tower, Banglamotor, Dhaka.