Education secy withdrawn amid student protests

Bangladesh desk: The interim government has withdrawn Senior Secretary of Ministry of Education Siddiq Zubair amid intense student protests.

The information was shared by Mahfuz Alam, adviser to the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting, through a verified Facebook post on Tuesday afternoon.

Earlier, students; furious over a last-minute decision regarding the HSC exam schedule, stormed Secretariat and vandalized several government vehicles.

The situation escalated around 3:40 PM when students forcefully entered Gate no. 1 of the Secretariat.

In response, police used batons to disperse the crowd.

The protests had started earlier in the day outside the Secretariat.

According to students, many students from Milestone College tragically died in a plane crash the previous day. Despite the tragedy, the HSC examination was not initially postponed. At around 3:00 AM, a sudden decision was made to postpone the exam, but students only found out after leaving home to attend it in the morning.

“Such an irresponsible decision is unacceptable. We demand the resignation of the education adviser and the secretary,” one student said.

Students from various colleges across Dhaka took part in the demonstration.

In the aftermath, a tense atmosphere still lingers around the Secretariat.

Army personnel, police and other law enforcement agencies have been deployed to maintain order.