Unrest at Alia Madrasa in Dhaka: Two groups clash, army deployed

Staff Correspondent

A clash broke out between two groups of students at the government-run Alia Madrasa campus in the capital’s Bakshibazar area on Saturday night. The army has been deployed on the madrasa premises to control the situation as the tension quickly escalated.

According to eyewitnesses and police, an argument broke out between two student groups in the madrasa hall around 10 pm. The tension quickly escalated into a fight and later escalated into a chase. At least seven students were injured in the clash.

The injured include Sadiq (21), Moin (22), Ilyas (21), Omar Farooq (21), Abu Bakkar (22), Walid (22) and Enamul (22).

The initial cause of the clash was not clear. However, police said that one group, an organization called “Sammilit Chhatra Parishad”, had organized a Milad Mahfil, and the other group was upset because they were not invited.

At the same time, some rods were brought from the temporary courthouse and kept in a nearby area inside the madrasa, which the police suspect could be a source of tension.

As the crisis intensified, the local administration deployed additional police and army. The injured students were rushed to the emergency department of Dhaka Medical College Hospital (DMCH), where they are undergoing treatment.

Madrasa teachers and other students said they could not clarify who started the clash or the real reason for the incident. The administration said the situation was under control and that a citation drive was ongoing to defuse the tension.