Students hold silent procession demanding justice for Opratim

Students of Comilla University (CoU) on Tuesday held a silent procession and wore black badges demanding justice for Ishayat Shahriar Opratim and immediate implementation of their four-point demands.

The silent procession began around 11:00am from the university’s Gol Chattar and paraded through the campus. After the procession, Farha Khanam, a student, said, “We have taken to the streets in protest out of the grief of losing our brother. At the same time, we want to know from the university administration how far progress has been made regarding our four-point demands.”

Shahanaz said, “We strongly condemn and protest the decision to send those accused in Opratim’s murder to a juvenile development centre on the grounds of their age.

It is deeply concerning that those involved in a serious crime like murder could be kept outside the scope of punishment solely because of their age.”

She also called for initiatives to address such legal limitations and inconsistencies and demanded that all those involved in Opratim’s murder be brought under the law and given a fair and impartial trial.

Mahin said, “We can see that the police administration is showing double standards regarding the ages of the accused.

They have concealed their ages to help them evade punishment and sent them to a correctional facility. We strongly condemn this.”

“We also demand the immediate implementation of our four-point demands, including the construction of a police outpost on the university campus,” he added.