Students blocked the Dhaka-Mymensingh highway in Tongi, Gazipur, today (9 August), demanding justice for a madrasah student killed after being hit by a covered van and calling for safer roads.

The blockade resulted in long tailbacks on both sides of the highway, causing severe congestion and suffering for commuters and drivers.

The deceased, Yasin Ali, 17, son of Ripon Mia of Pabna’s Sujanagar, was a ninth-grader at Tamirul Millat Kamil Madrasah and lived with his family in Gazipura Kazipara.

Police and witnesses said a speeding covered van hit Yasin while he was crossing the highway near Gazipura bus stand around 7:30pm yesterday, leaving him critically injured.

Traffic and Tongi East police rescued Yasin and took him to Shaheed Ahsan Ullah Master General Hospital, where doctors declared him dead.

The driver fled the scene after the accident, but police seized the vehicle and took it to the police station.

Mehedi Hasan, officer-in-charge of Tongi East Police Station, said an inquest report has been prepared and police are conducting an operation to identify and arrest the driver who fled the scene. 

Legal proceedings are underway, he added.

Yasin’s death sparked anger among his classmates, who, under the Tamirul Millat Central Students’ Union, blocked the highway at Asia Pump and Gazipura bus stand this morning.

The protesters demanded immediate construction of footbridges at the two locations, safe passage for pedestrians, measures to prevent further loss of life and a permanent solution rather than assurances.

The blockade was still underway until around 1pm, causing a long tailback stretching from Tongi to Chandana Chowrasta and leaving commuters in severe distress.

Ashrafuzzaman, deputy commissioner (traffic) of Gazipur Metropolitan Police, said police were deployed at the scene to prevent any untoward incident.

“Police are trying to persuade the protesting students to leave the road and restore normal traffic movement,” he said.