TDS Desk:

Students, teachers and locals were protesting against the crackdown on peaceful protests in Dhaka University, Mirpur-10, Basundhara, Shantinagar, Science Lab areas of the capital.

Outside Dhaka, the protests continue in Rajshahi, Chattogram, Narayanganj, Lakshmipur, Kushtia, Brahmanbaria and Barishal, among some other districts.

Students of Jahangirnagar University previously blocked the Dhaka-Aricha Highway with a 9-point demand at 12:50pm.

They withdrew the blockade after an hour at 1:50pm. The JU students also gave an ultimatum to open all university halls within 24 hours

Major highways and roads have been blocked in some other districts as well.

Here are all the latest developments on the protest as reported by our correspondents.

5:55pm

Protesters concluded today’s programme at the Central Shaheed Minar. Next programme will be announced to press home their one-point demand, according to the protesters.

5:20pm

The closer you get to the Central Shaheed Minar, the more deafening the roars become. It’s a human sea, a mass of human bodies, swirling with the breeze.

The majority are students, but you can also spot children shouting slogans, sitting on the shoulders of their seniors.

They move as one: one rhythm, one word and the same demands.

“We want justice,” the crowd roars.

In pockets you can find artists in elephant and tiger masks. You can find parents of children.

A husband and wife quietly share a photo with the national flag.

The spirit is unmistakable.

Every now and then, other protesters come in rickshaws, carrying free bottles of water.

Hundreds of rickshaw rickshaw-pullers stand on their vehicles, joining the chants.

In the swarm of bodies, you can see hands jutting out from the crowd. The claps ring out, synchronised

5:15pm

Students from various colleges and universities, protesting against the violence during the quota reform movement, including deaths and mass arrests, and demanding the fulfilment of their nine-point charter, withdrew their demonstration at the Mirpur-10 intersection after four hours.

The protest began around 12:30pm. Later, at 4:30pm, they announced their next programme and gradually started to leave the area,    .

Traffic in the area returned to normal after the protest ended.

In view of the protest, police and BGB personnel were deployed in a vigilant posture on the wes side of Mirpur 10.

After 2pm, the number of protesters began to increase, and it turned into a huge crowd.

Many parents also accompany their children for safety reasons. An estimated 8-10 thousand people gathered.

5pm

The musicians at Rabindra Sarobar in Dhanmondi concluded their gathering calling for the fulfilment of the students’ fundamental rights.

Following the gathering, the participants marched towards Central Shaheed Minar, where their next course of action will be announced.

Band artist Hasan, who joined the gathering to express solidarity with the students, told reporters that while government assets can be rebuilt, lost lives cannot be recovered. He urged everyone to ensure that no more lives are lost. Parents were also seen at Rabindra Sarobar.

4:50pm

Students at Jamuna Future Park withdrew their protest and cleared the road,    .

4:10pm

Awami League leaders, along with members of its affiliated organisations, are conducting peaceful processions and demonstrations in various wards of the capital to express their support for the government.

Khairul Majid Bhuyan Kabir, president of the Awami League’s 15th ward in the metropolis, told that they have peacefully gathered in front of the party chairperson’s office in Dhanmondi.

He added that the party has issued directives to ensure that no attacks are carried out on peaceful protesters.

4:00pm

Expressing solidarity with the students, musicians met at Rabindra Sarobar in Dhanmondi around 4pm,    .

3.50pm

Development professionals staged a one-hour sit-in at Gulshan’s Shahabuddin Park to express solidarity with the ongoing student protests.

Approximately 500 professionals from various development sectors, including accounting and technology, participated in the gathering.

Organised under the banner of “Desperately Seeking Development Experts” (DSDE), the group condemned the use of force to suppress student and public protests.

3.35pm

Calling for the success of tomorrow’s non-cooperation movement, the students in Rajshahi withdrew Saturday’s programme after approximately four hours.

Around 2:30pm, the students ended their protest at Railgate area.

Earlier in the morning, around 10:30am, students had blocked the Rajshahi-Dhaka highway in front of the Rajshahi University of Engineering and Technology (RUET) gate defying rain.

While marching at Talai Mari, Bhadra, and Railgate, some protesters vandalised and set fire to three police boxes, police claimed.

Jamirul Islam, additional deputy commissioner of Rajshahi Metropolitan Police told That students had vandalised and set fire to three police boxes in Bhadra, Talai Mari, and Railgate areas.

“The police remain on high alert, but the situation is now calm as the protesters have dispersed,” he added.

3:32pm

At least a thousand people have gathered at the New Market area of Chattogram, protesting against the crackdown on quota reform protesters, reported our correspondent from the spot.

‘POLICE CAN’T STOP US’: STUDENTS, CIVILIANS PROTEST IN CTG

3:25pm

Protesters from all across Dhaka have started to gather in front of Central Shaheed Minar.

3:00pm

Protesters in Kushtia withdrew their protest around 2pm after nearly three hours.

Around 11am, defying heavy rain, they gathered at Saddam Bazar intersection.

Later, they took out a procession and marched around Chauras intersection before returning to Majompur Railgate, where they stood and chanted anti-government slogans.

Parents of the protesting students also joined the protest and chanted slogans in solidarity with their children.

The approximately four kilometres stretch of the Kushtia-Jhenaidah highway was occupied by the protesters. However, the students allowed emergency vehicles, including ambulances, to pass through the road.

Meanwhile, police took a few students into custody from different locations on suspicion.

The Officer-in-Charge of Kushtia Model Police Station, Mahafujul Haque, said that a few people had been brought to the police station on suspicion and would be released if they were students.

Sohel Uddin, the general secretary of Kushtia district BNP and a former MP, also joined the procession. He said that he had taken to the streets as a common citizen to support the students’ demands.

2:47pm

Students and parents have staged a protest in front of the BNS Center in Uttara 7, holding the national flag.

“We don’t want to see the bullet bought with our tax money shot at our children,” said a protesting mother.

2:30pm

Protesters have closed roads in both lanes in front of the Labaid Hospital in Dhanmondi.

1:50pm

Students of Jahangirnagar University withdrew the blockade after an hour.

1:32pm

Protesting students of schools and colleges and their guardians have blocked the Science Lab intersection in the capital, reports our correspondent from the spot.

1:11pm

Protesting students send back an APC vehicle of Police towards Mirpur 12 as it approaches the Mirpur 10 intersection.

As of now, at least 2,000 students have taken control of the Mirpur 10 roundabout,    .

1:06pm

At least 1,500 students and teachers are demonstrating in the capital’s Basundhara. They are taking a procession in front of the Jamuna Future Park.

12:50pm

Students of Jahangirnagar University blocked the Dhaka-Aricha Highway with a 9-point demand.

The students also gave an ultimatum to open all university halls within 24 hours.

Students of Jahangirnagar University blocks the Dhaka-Aricha Highway on Saturday, 3 August 2024. Photo: Noman Mahmud

Students of Jahangirnagar University blocks the Dhaka-Aricha Highway on Saturday, 3 August 2024. Photo: Noman Mahmud

12:30pm

More than 200 protesters have taken position in the Mirpur-10 intersection, reported our correspondent from the spot.

Students from nearby colleges and private universities attended the protest.

Law enforcers were seen stationed near the intersection.

12:25pm

Parents of the protesting students formed a human chain under the banner of “Parents in Solidarity with the Children” this morning (3 August) in front of the National Museum at Shahbagh.

The human chain was titled “Why is death so easy?”

12:10pm

A 17-year-old teenager named Imon died in Dhaka Medical College Hospital (DMCH) in the early hours Saturday (3 August) after being injured in the violence centring the quota reform movement in the capital’s Notun Bazar area on 19 July.

He was undergoing treatment at the hospital with bullet wounds.

11:50am

Students protesting the government’s crackdown on peaceful protests across the country have blocked the roads near the Chashara intersection in Narayanganj.

The previously announced protest programme started at 11:30am this morning (3 August). Students from various educational institutions gathered in front of the Chashara Shaheed Minar and started a procession.

11:00am

Students and locals protesting against the government’s crackdown on peaceful protests have blocked the Dhaka-Rajshahi highway in front of the Rajshahi University of Engineering and Technology (RUET) gate.

PROTESTING STUDENTS, LOCALS BLOCK DHAKA-RAJSHAHI HIGHWAY DEFYING RAIN

The previously announced protest programme started at 10am this morning (3 August). People were seen chanting slogans while taking positions on the highway. University teachers, lawyers, and people from various professions participated in the protest with students.