Staff Reporter :
Several passengers, including children, were injured in an attack on the Upakul Express train by protesters on Monday as Titumir college students have attacked the Dhaka-bound Upakul Express, which was coming from Noakhali.
Rail communication between Dhaka and other parts of the country as well as road traffic in the capital resumed after students from Govt Titumir College ended their blockade of railway tracks in Mohakhali on Monday afternoon following a four-hour disruption.
Joynal Abedin, officer-in-charge (OC) of Dhaka railway police station, said rail communication with Dhaka resumed at around 4:20pm.
Russell Sarwar, Banani Police Station OC, said the students withdrew their rail and road blockade following an assurance from the authorities concerned.
Fourteen students from Government Titumir College have begun a hunger strike at the secretariat, demanding the formation of a commission to convert the college into a university. At the same time, students have resumed protests by blocking the road in front of the college gate in the city’s Mohakhali. This has led to traffic halt on the road from the Amtali intersection to Gulshan-1.
Students have long been demanding the conversion of their college into a university and the formation of the Titumir University Commission. They have protested multiple times in the past by blocking roads to highlight their demands.
Earlier on Monday, several people, including children, were injured in an attack on a train when Titumir College students blocked the rail tracks in Mohakhali, demanding that their college be upgraded to a university.
OC Joynul said four Dhaka-bound trains, along with another train scheduled to depart from Dhaka, were stranded due to the blockade.
He mentioned that the Kamalapur-bound Parabat Express was attacked in Mohakhali around 11:30am, resulting in injuries to several people, including children. However, he could not provide the exact number of those injured.