One student of Begum Rokeya University (BRU) in Rangpur was killed during a clash between police and the quota reform protesters at the university entrance this noon.

The deceased was identified as Abu Sayeed, 25, a student of the English department of BRU.

He was brought dead at Rangpur Medical College Hospital at 3:05 pm, according to his death certificate.

Sayeed, also one of the organizers of the quota reform movement, was injured as police fired rubber bullets to resist a group of protesters entering the BRU campus at around 2:00 pm, according to the eyewitnesses.

The clash erupted as students from different educational institutions marched towards the campus from the Lalbag area and tried to enter the campus through Gate no-1.

The students also chanted slogans against the quota system in government jobs and Monday’s attack on the protesters countrywide.

Initially, police charged batons and fired tear gas to disperse the protesters. The protesters, in response, started throwing brickbats at the police.

As clashes turned severe, police fired rubber bullets on the protesters, leaving at least 50 injured.

“Rubber bullets were fired to bring the situation under control,” Abu Bakar Siddique, Additional Commissioner of Police told to media.

Meanwhile, quota protesters carrying the dead body of Abu Sayeed tried to enter the campus at around 4:00 pm. But police resisted entering the campus.

A tense situation was prevailing at the time of filing the report at 5:00 pm.

“We have been trying our best to bring the situation under control,” BRU Proctor Shariful Islam told media.

BDST: 1727 HRS, JULY 16, 2024
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