Parents have expressed deep concern over the possibility of a fresh clash between students of Mohammadpur Government High School and Dhanmondi Government Boys’ High School, as both institutions are scheduled to attend their SSC practical exams at the same centre today (15 May).
The Gonobhaban Government High School in Sher-e-Bangla Nagar has been serving as the examination centre for both schools.
On the last day of the last theoretical SSC exams on 13 May, a student from Dhanmondi Government Boys’ High School was severely beaten by a group of students from Mohammadpur Government High School near the exam centre, which later turned into a clash between the two schools.
“I was on the spot that day,” said Syed Zakir Hossain, a correspondent of our newspaper and a parent.
“I saw a RAB vehicle nearby and urged them strongly to step out of their vehicle and intervene so the students would be scared off. But they remained inside.”
“By that time, the two groups had already engaged in a violent fight. I later told the RAB personnel that had they stepped out, the students wouldn’t have dared to behave like that. I even took photos of the incident and told RAB that they cannot deny the responsibility.”
According to parents, the situation remains tense as both schools have their SSC practical exams scheduled at the same venue today (15 May). Mohammadpur students are assigned to appear between 10am and 12pm, while Dhanmondi students are scheduled from 2pm to 4pm.
“Students from Mohammadpur have a WhatsApp group where, last night (14 May), they wrote about ‘showing their strength’ – implying another attack,” said Syed Zakir Hossain.
“On the other side, students from Dhanmondi have been discussing in their group that they’ve heard the others might bring chapatis (machetes) today, and are scared about how to prepare themselves. Everyone is very anxious.”
The parent said he called the police control room late last night after hearing of the tension from his son.
“They told me this falls under the jurisdiction of Sher-e-Bangla Nagar police station and gave me the OC’s number, asking me to call. I phoned twice around 1am, but the OC didn’t answer. I tried again twice this morning – still no response.”
The concerned parent also informed the newspaper’s crime reporter and asked that police be contacted directly.
“Even one or two officers on site could stop something terrible from happening. But if no one shows up, a serious incident could occur,” he added.
The reporter also attempted to contact police, but received no response.
As of filing this report, no police officer had responded to repeated calls made to the Sher-e-Bangla Nagar police station OC since last night.