HSC examinees take to streets nationwide

Students in at least 11 districts staged road blockades, human chains, and rallies on Tuesday, demanding Education Minister A N M Ehsanul Haque Milon’s resignation over the decision to hold Higher Secondary Certificate (HSC) exams despite heavy rain and waterlogging nationwide.

Protesters say Monday’s exam went ahead despite severe weather, leaving many unable to reach centers in time.

Their core demands: suspend exams until flooding subsides, allow a retake for those who missed Monday’s paper, and have the minister apologize for remarks students found dismissive — or resign within 24 hours.

Traffic on major roads in Dhaka, including the Elevated Expressway and Airport Road, ground to a halt for hours after examinees blocked key routes in Uttara, adding to the day’s disruption.

Protest outside Parliament, “March to Education Ministry” planned for Wednesday Demonstrators gathered outside the National Parliament building, arguing that holding HSC exams in the current adverse weather was placing inhumane pressure on students. They demanded the education minister’s immediate resignation and announced they would continue their movement until their demands were met, with a “March to the Education Ministry” planned for Wednesday.

Regional protests
Barisal — From around 12:15 PM, students from several colleges blocked the Dhaka-Barisal highway outside the education board office for nearly three hours, snarling traffic on the Dhaka-Barisal-Kuakata route.

A Hatem Ali College student said the exam was held in bad weather without adequate holiday breaks beforehand, and alleged this year’s paper was harder than previous years and included out-of-syllabus content. Stranded bus passengers described being stuck for over an hour in humid, overcast conditions.

Mymensingh — Students blockaded the Mymensingh-Tangail highway at Town Hall around noon. One protester said students waded through chest-deep water to attend while the minister stayed in an air-conditioned office. Police negotiated with the group, who moved to the district commissioner’s office by 2:30 PM and dispersed an hour later; officials said the demonstration remained peaceful.

Cumilla — Students under the banner “Cumilla’s Conscious Student Society” rallied at Kandirpar’s Purbali Chattar before marching to the education board. A Victoria Government College student said classmates fell ill after taking the exam soaked, having waded through waist-deep water.

Bogura — Students marched to the district commissioner’s office demanding both the minister’s resignation and the education secretary’s removal, citing waterlogging and an out-of-syllabus paper. Local BNP and Jubo Dal leaders later mediated talks with a student delegation.

Tangail — Students blocked the Dhaka-Tangail-Jamuna Bridge highway near the Bypass for about 75 minutes, backing up traffic in both directions, angered by the exam timing and a remark comparing students to “farm chickens.”
Rajshahi — Several hundred students occupied the education board premises, later submitting a memorandum to board chairman Professor Shamim Ara Chowdhury.

Sylhet — Students held a sit-in near the Central Shaheed Minar, saying heavy rain and waterlogging kept many from reaching exam centers on time.
Kurigram, Sunamganj, Naogaon, Rangpur — Similar human chains and rallies were held, with speakers alleging an error in the Physics first-paper question set and inconsistent difficulty across boards. A follow-up rally was announced in Sunamganj for Wednesday.

Clash near Parliament
By evening, protesters gathered outside the National Parliament building around 6 PM while a session was underway, chanting against the minister. When some tried to push toward the building and reportedly threw objects at police, officers baton-charged the crowd around 6:45 PM, dispersing them toward Asad Gate. Several students were injured.

Minister apologizes, announces retakes
Speaking in Parliament as protests unfolded across Dhaka, Savar, Barishal, Cumilla, Narayanganj, Jashore, Bogura, Mymensingh, Rajshahi and Tangail, Milon apologized for his earlier remarks and said the Physics First Paper, Accounting First Paper, and Logic First Paper exams held Monday may be retaken.

He also said re-examinations could be arranged for candidates who missed their tests due to floods or administrative failures, telling lawmakers the government would not deprive students of their rights.

Responding to a question from Jamaat-e-Islami MP Md Shafiqul Islam, Milon said the ministry had been monitoring exam centers throughout the monsoon and had instructed local administrations to relocate venues whenever floodwater entered them.

He said Cumilla Government College had posed the most significant challenge due to inundated grounds, while other affected centers were relocated in time. He noted a similar re-examination arrangement had already been made under the Chattogram Education Board, and that option remained open elsewhere.

Meanwhile, BNP Senior Joint Secretary General Ruhul Kabir Rizvi, visiting flood-affected areas in Chattogram’s Banshkhali upazila, called for postponing the exams given the flooding, saying students were risking their safety just trying to reach exam centers and urging authorities to wait for floodwaters to recede.

National Citizen Party (NCP) leader and Cumilla-4 MP Hasnat Abdullah, speaking at a rally in Narayanganj’s Sonargaon, accused the education minister of forcing 2026’s HSC candidates to wade through knee- and chest-deep water to sit exams, criticized errors left in a question paper, and said authorities had shown no willingness to apologize — instead using dismissive language toward students.