Mohakhali nightmare nears end as Titumir College students call off protest after 4hrs
They demanded the government upgrade their institutions to a university
It was yet another nightmare of a day for commuters in the capital.
Students of Government Titumir College descended on the roads today (18 November), blocking roads and even allegedly attacking a train, leaving many passengers injured.
Their blockade, demanding the government upgrade their institution to a university, began from 11:00am and lasted for four-and-a-hours.
Traffic movement was disrupted throughout the area and its impact could be felt long after the demonstrations had ended.
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Netizens were infuriated when pictures and news on the attack on a train broke.
As the intercity train Upakul Express, coming from Noakhali, was crossing the Mohakhali crossing amid the blockade, agitated students tried to stop it. However, the train reduced speed, instead of stopping, to avoid accidents. At the time, students threw bricks and stones at the train and shattered several windows.
The train eventually moved on from there, but the attack left several passengers injured inside the train, confirmed Constable Azim from the railway headquarters control room.
Two more trains - Jamalpur-bound Agnibina Express and Banalata Express coming from Chapainawabganj - also got stuck on either side of the tracks near Mohakhali due to the blockade.
The blockade at the level crossing located under the Mohakhali flyover suspended rail communication between Dhaka and most of the country.
"The Mohanganj Express, which was scheduled to depart Kamalapur Railway Station at 1:15pm, remains stuck at the station," Mukhlesur Rahman, an officer at the Dhaka Railway Police Control Room, told The Business Post confirming the suspension of train services on that route.
The demonstration has created gridlocks on all roads to and from the Mohakhali bus stand and the level crossing, leaving commuters suffering. Many disgruntled commuters were seen getting off public transport and walking to their destinations.
Students also blockaded the Amtoli intersection, leaving all vehicles on the Banani-Mohakhali road stuck in a long tailback, said Russel Sarwar, the officer-in-charge of Banani Police Station.
Nearly 1,000 students brought out a procession from the college campus at around 11:30am. From there, they came and positioned themselves at the level crossing and the roads soon.
More than 200 members of the police, along with an Armoured Personnel Carrier and water cannon, have been deployed to the area to maintain order.
What students say
Titumir College students have demonstrated multiple times over the past months by blocking roads, demanding that the college be upgraded to a university and the formation of the Titumir University Commission.
Rafiq Uddin Raihan, a student of the college's English department, told TBS, "A commission has to be formed. It takes a long time to establish a university. But if it's formed, the commission will gradually work on that."
Others agreed that the first step was to immediately form a commission in this regard.
No official statement from the interim government has come so far regarding today's demonstration.
Commuter woes only grow
Expressing frustration, Mohammad Faruq, the driver's assistant of a Gazipur Paribahan bus stuck at Banani's Chairman Bari bus stand, said, "Our income for the day just got reduced. We just lost all our passengers. They got off and walked ahead because of the blockade. We will have to return to Gazipur from here."
The bus, along with many other vehicles, was seen making a U-turn from Chairman Bari at 2:00pm.
Aklima Begum was seen walking with her five-year-old child alongside many other commuters who were forced to get off the transport due to the blockade. "Demonstrations and blockades have become the first resort for everyone. No one thinks about the suffering they are causing to general people like us."
At around 2:50pm, some Titumir College students were seen playing cricket on the road at the Mohakhali intersection after putting up barricades on the roads towards Moghbazar, Banani and Bijoy Sarani.
Talking to The Business Standard around the same time, 70-year-old Azizul Haque, a passenger of an Azmeri Glory bus stuck in the traffic jam near the Mohakhali intersection, said, "I was on my way to Gazipur's Konabari. We've been stuck here since 11am. Not sure how long we'll have to wait.
"Why aren't the government taking any effective steps? This is unbearable at my age."
