Several hundred students stormed the Secretariat in protest against ‘discriminatory’ HSC exam results, demanding re-evaluation of results and correction of errors.
Police later dispersed the students by chasing them and using batons, removing them from the Secretariat premises. Over fifty students were detained during the incident.
A group of students under the banner of ‘HSC Batch 2024’ protested near the main gate of building-6 of the Secretariat around 2:30pm, amid a thick presence of police and army personnel.
Around 2:50pm, more than a hundred students stormed the Secretariat, chanting slogans like ‘No place for discrimination in my Golden Bengal,’ ‘We want justice,’ ‘No place for discrimination in Mughdho’s Bengal,’ ‘Who are you, who am I—student-student,’ and ‘No compromise, struggle-struggle.’
Several students expressed frustration during the protest, saying, “We want results based on equality. Some received good grades while others did not, even though we all performed well. We want the results annulled and a re-evaluation for those affected.”
The agitated students claimed that the results released so far are discriminatory and demanded a re-evaluation of all subjects through a ‘mapping’ process. They also sought justice for the attacks they faced at various boards. The students vowed to stay until their demands were met.
Initially, members of the Bangladesh Army and law enforcement agencies on duty attempted to calm the situation and requested the students to leave. However, when they refused, law enforcers chased them and dispersed the crowd using batons.
Most students had fled by 4:00PM, but several were trapped inside the Secretariat. Eventually, police were seen loading over fifty students into prison vans.
When asked about the situation, Dhaka Metropolitan Police Additional Commissioner (Crime) Israil Hawlader stated, "We will do whatever is necessary to maintain law and order."
Ramna Division Deputy Commissioner Masud Alam added that the detained students would be questioned at the police station, and further action would be taken following the interrogation.
The results of the HSC and equivalent examinations were released on October 15. Students have since labelled them discriminatory. Terming the results as discriminatory the students demanded the government to publish the results through mapping of all subjects.
Earlier, on October 20, a group of students had entered the Dhaka Secondary and Higher Secondary Education Board, protesting with the same demands. They confined board officials throughout the day, leading to the resignation of the Board Chairman, Professor Tapan Kumar Sarkar, that evening.
On that day, students claimed they were attacked during the protest, resulting in injuries to several of them.
On the other hand, board officials reported that students vandalized the chairman’s office and nearby areas.
