Anti-discrimination protesters besiege Ctg police station, block highway

Protesters have surrounded the local police station in Chattogram's Patiya following a clash between members of the Anti-discrimination Student Movement and the police after the group allegedly detained a leader of the Bangladesh Chhatra League (BCL) and handed him over to law enforcers.

Hundreds of members of the Anti-discrimination Student Movement joined the demonstration outside the Patiya Police Station from around 10:00 am on Wednesday, according to Chattogram's Additional Superintendent of Police Mohammad Russel.

The protest has disrupted traffic on the Chattogram-Cox’s Bazar highway, causing untold suffering to commuters.

In a post to Facebook on Wednesday, Arif Sohel, joint member secretary of the National Citizen Party (NCP), wrote: “The Patiya Police Station must be reduced to rubble.”

According to local reporters who witnessed the events, around 9:30 pm on Tuesday, activists of the Anti-discrimination Student Movement detained a BCL leader in Patiya's Shaheed Minar area and brought him to the police station. They asked the police to formally arrest him.

When the activists allegedly tried to physically assault the BCL leader at the police station, officers intervened, leading to a scuffle in which several people were injured, the journalists said.

In protest, the student group announced a plan to surround the police station via social media.

“On Tuesday night, someone was brought to the police station, and there was a demand to place him under arrest. When an attempt was made to create disorder on the premises, police intervened," ASP Russel said.

“As a result, some students have been demonstrating outside the station since the morning. Police are working to maintain peace and order.”

Attempts to reach Ridwan Siddiqui, joint coordinator of the Anti-discrimination Student Movement in Chattogram, for comment were unsuccessful as he did not respond to phone calls.