Clash with Polytechnic Institute's Students
Truck workers accuse students of extortion
A section of Dhaka Polytechnic Institute students' extorting truck workers in the institute area led to Wednesday night's violence, the workers' leaders claimed on Thursday and said the students were extorting them "under the protection of the ruling party".
The students and truck workers, each side claiming to be mugged by the other on that night, clashed near the institute till 4:30am Thursday. The violence left about 40 people, including eight students, injured, five trucks burnt and 25 others vandalised.
Additional Deputy Commissioner of police Biplab Sarkar, however, said the clashes broke out centring parking of trucks on the roads around the polytechnic institute.
Students say they have to face difficulties moving in the area due to the random parking, while truckers accuse the students of extorting them for parking each truck, he told The Daily Star.
President of Bangladesh Truck Drivers' Union Monir Talukder claimed that some student leaders led by one Zakir Hossain had been collecting Tk 150 to Tk 200 against each truck parked on different roads near the institute.
"When some workers denied paying the money, those students beat them up. They also misguided other students saying the workers had attacked them," he said.
Asked, ADC Biplab Sarkar said the truckers did have to park the vehicles near the institute, as there was not enough space at the truck stand.
For Wednesday's violence, traffic congestion was created in the institute area for around three hours, while trapped passengers were mugged at that time.
About the mugging of commuters and ransacking of the polytechnic institute and adjacent Glass and Ceramic Institute and Textile and Engineering Institute during the violence, the truckers' leader said, "A vested quarter in the guise of workers stoked the clashes to achieve political advantage, while local criminals looted the commuters.
"We have formed two separate committees to find out the cause of the violence and people who fuelled the clashes."
Meanwhile, the Directorate of Technical Education formed a three-member committee on Thursday to investigate the incident.
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