Students have dismissed the education minister’s assertion over retaking exam, saying the minister has ‘ignored many of his previous pledges’

Staff Reporter:

Police charged batons at students to disperse them after they tried to enter the National Parliament and ignored officers’ repeated calls to avoid the security breach, during a session of the house on Tuesday evening.

Many students were reportedly injured as police chased them to the Asad Gate area. Many students also attempted to throw brick chips at the law enforcers.

Students of HSC and equivalent exams were protesting at the section of Manik Mia Avenue demanding that Education Minister ANM Ehsanul Hoque Milon must resign for holding an HSC exam on Monday, despite persistent rainfall, waterlogging and flood-like situation across the country.

Later, the minister assured that the concerned exam would be retaken if necessary — but the students have said they have no hope in him as he has “ignored many such pledges in the past.”

Earlier, students took position near the south plaza of the Parliament chanting different slogans against the Education Minister including “Bhua,” which translates as “fake” or “bogus” in English.

Around 5:45pm, they breached a police barricade near the Asad Gate to reach the south plaza.

The students launched the “March Towards the Parliament” after lifting an hourlong blockade at the Science Lab Intersection around 5:20pm.

Before starting the march, Dhaka City College’s HSC student Mirazul Islam announced three demands: 1) the education minister must resign by 6pm and apologise for his improper statements, 2) Monday’s exams must be retaken and Wednesday’s exams must be suspended, 3) question papers have to be made “student-friendly” and new exam schedule has to be published.

The BNP government has introduced unified question papers for all the education boards in this year’s HSC exams to help students across the country better compete with peers both domestically and both internationally.

However, students allege that the questions were too difficult compared with previous years’ trend.

Students of HSC and equivalent exams staged protests and road blockades across the country since the morning, demanding the education minister’s resignation.

In Dhaka city, they blocked the Science Lab intersection twice, demonstrated near an event attended by the PM at Dhaka University, took positions near the Dhaka Education Board and also blockaded a the Dhaka-Mymensingh Highway in Uttara.