Police baton-charged students near the Jatiya Sangsad Bhaban on Tuesday evening (July 14) as they demonstrated demanding the resignation of Education Minister Dr A N M Ehsanul Hoque Milon.
The students had taken position on the road in front of the South Plaza of the parliament complex before police dispersed them.
Earlier in the afternoon, students from different colleges gathered there to protest the holding of Monday’s HSC examinations despite heavy rain and waterlogging.
The protesters had staged demonstrations and road blockades in different parts of the capital throughout the day.
They first blocked the Science Lab intersection around 11:30am, demanding the education minister’s resignation and a fresh opportunity for those who could not sit Monday’s examinations.
After about 45 minutes, they withdrew the blockade and marched through New Market to the area in front of the Dhaka University vice-chancellor’s residence.
Police later asked them to leave the area, after which the students moved to the Dhaka Education Board and staged a brief sit-in there.
In the afternoon, they returned to Science Lab and blocked the road for about an hour before starting a march towards the Jatiya Sangsad Bhaban.
The procession moved from Science Lab towards parliament while chanting slogans. Police put up a barricade in the Asad Gate area, but the students crossed it and reached the gate of the South Plaza, where they took position.
The protesters demanded the resignation of the education minister, reforms in the education system and quick implementation of their demands.
Members of law enforcement agencies remained deployed in the area to keep the situation under control.
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