5 Shibir leaders held from DU hall, sent to jail

They are Abdul Kuddus and Shikder Mujib, former hall unit presidents of ICS, Tofazzel Hossain, current president, and Habibullah Mahmud and Shimul.

"Those Shibir men were produced before the court today (yesterday) after the hall provost filed a case against them on charge of beating a student attached to the dormitory," said Shahidul Islam, office-in-charge of Shahbagh Police Station.

Earlier, the hall administration temporarily expelled two Shibir leaders on charge of beating the student on Friday after he had refused to join their "organisational training programme".

The hall administration also formed a three-member committee headed by Dr Delwar Hossain, a house tutor, to probe the incident. The committee has been asked to submit its report by the next 72 hours.

The situation became tense on Sunday after the attached student submitted a statement to hall provost alleging that the ICS men took him along with 12 other students in a mess at Katabon area on Friday and asked them to join the organisation and tried to encourage them to engage in Islamist militancy.

Md Abrar Ahmed also alleged that as he refused to abide by their directives, they beat him and forced him out of the mess.

After hearing the incident the agitated students beat up five ICS leaders and activists at around 1:00am.

Three of the injured were admitted to a city hospital. They also ransacked two rooms of Shibir-affiliated students.

Police charged batons to bring the situation under control injuring three students.

A number of resident students, many of whom are activists of Bangladesh Chhatra League (BCL), alleged that the ICS men are instigating general students to militancy with the assurance of providing them seats at the hall.

The hall administration and police are also patronising them, they said.

When asked Prof Zahidul Islam said both the feuding groups are their students, so they have the responsibility to protect all of them.

About the Islamic books seized from the two rooms of ICS, he said, "Everyone has the right to keep the books of his own choice."

More over it is not the duty of the provost or the house tutor to keep an eye on what kind of books the students are reading, he added.

Meanwhile, Progotishil Chhatra Jote, an alliance of left-leaning student organisations, yesterday met Vice-chancellor Prof SMA Faiz and alleged that the hall administration is patronising the ICS activities.