The Bangladesh Chhatra League ( bn, বাংলাদেশ ছাত্রলীগ;
translation
Translation is the communication of the Meaning (linguistic), meaning of a #Source and target languages, source-language text by means of an Dynamic and formal equivalence, equivalent #Source and target languages, target-language text. The ...
: Bangladesh Students' League; BSL), formerly known as the East Pakistan Student League, often simply called the Chhatra League, is a students'
political organisation
A political organization is any organization that involves itself in the political process, including political parties, non-governmental organizations, and special interest advocacy groups. Political organizations are those engaged in politica ...
in
Bangladesh
Bangladesh (}, ), officially the People's Republic of Bangladesh, is a country in South Asia. It is the eighth-most populous country in the world, with a population exceeding 165 million people in an area of . Bangladesh is among the mos ...
, founded by
Sheikh Mujibur Rahman
Sheikh Mujibur Rahman ( bn, শেখ মুজিবুর রহমান; 17 March 1920 – 15 August 1975), often shortened as Sheikh Mujib or Mujib and widely known as Bangabandhu (meaning ''Friend of Bengal''), was a Bengalis, Beng ...
on 4 January 1948. BSL is the student wing of the
Bangladesh Awami League
Bangladesh (}, ), officially the People's Republic of Bangladesh, is a country in South Asia. It is the eighth-most populous country in the world, with a population exceeding 165 million people in an area of . Bangladesh is among the mos ...
.
During the
Bangladesh Liberation War
The Bangladesh Liberation War ( bn, মুক্তিযুদ্ধ, , also known as the Bangladesh War of Independence, or simply the Liberation War in Bangladesh) was a revolution and War, armed conflict sparked by the rise of the Benga ...
, the Bangladesh Chhatra League was a key player, but in 1972, it broke up into two factions based on their allegiance to Shekh Mujibur Rahman. The group was a pioneer in the
1952 Language Movement, the 1954 general election victory of the
United Front (East Pakistan)
The United Front was a coalition of political parties in East Bengal which contested and won Pakistan's first provincial general election to the East Bengal Legislative Assembly. The coalition consisted of the Awami Muslim League, the Krishak ...
, the anti-Aiyub movement in 1958, the education movement in 1962, the
Six-Point movement in 1966, the
mass uprising in 1968, and the
1970 general elections.
BSL has been repeatedly accused of using torture, extortion, violence, forced prostitution, and killings to instill fear. At least 33 people were killed and 1,500 got seriously injured from attacks by BSL between 2009 and 2014. Number of fatalities rose to 129 between 2014 and 2018 while 31 people were killed in 2018 alone.
A BSL leader was arrested for links with the banned terrorist group
Jamaat-ul-Mujahideen Bangladesh
Jamaat-ul-Mujahideen ("Assembly of Mujahideen--Bangladesh", abbreviated: JMB; bn, জামাত-উল-মুজাহিদীন বাংলাদেশ) is a terrorist organisation operating in Bangladesh. It is listed as a terror group by ...
in a militant hunt after the
July 2016 Dhaka attack
On the night of 1 July 2016, at 21:20 local time, five militants took hostages and opened fire on the Holey Artisan Bakery in Gulshan Thana. The assailants entered the bakery with crude bombs, machetes, pistols, and took several dozen hostages ...
. The leaders and activists of the organization was found involved in the
2021 Bangladesh communal violence.
Bangladesh Chhatra League is accused of running a 'forced prostitution' racket by forcing the girls of
Eden Mohila College
Eden Mohila College (known as Eden College), is a women's college in Azimpur, Dhaka, Bangladesh. It was established in 1873 in the Farashganj area of Dhaka. In 1878 the school was named after Ashley Eden, Lieutenant Governor of Bengal. The colleg ...
unit by blackmailing them.
Following the attacks on
student protesters in 2018, a petition was started by general people of Bangladesh to "Enlist Bangladesh Chhatra League (BSL) as a Terrorist Organization" at
Change.org
Change.org is a worldwide nonprofit petition website, based in California, US, operated by the San Francisco-based company of the same name, which has over 400 million users and offers the public the ability to promote the petitions they care abo ...
. In 2019, prominent English-language daily of Bangladesh, ''
Dhaka Tribune
The ''Dhaka Tribune'' is a major Bangladeshi English-language daily newspaper based in Dhaka, the country's capital and largest city. It also operates an online Bengali version known as the ''Bangla Tribune''. The newspaper has a strong readershi ...
'' labelled the organization as "the brand of shame". On May 26, 2022 after a series of attack on dissident student groups eight left-wing student organizations termed Bangladesh Chhatra League a 'terrorist organization'.
History
On 4 January 1948, the East Pakistan Muslim Chhatra League was established by Sheikh Mujibur Rahman at a meeting in
Fazlul Huq Muslim Hall
Fazlul Huq Muslim Hall is one of the oldest residential halls of Dhaka University.
History
Fazlul Huq Muslim Hall was established in 1940 and named after A. K. Fazlul Huq, former prime minister of undivided Bengal. Fazlul Huq played a major part ...
at the
University of Dhaka
The University of Dhaka (also known as Dhaka University, or DU) is a public research university located in Dhaka, Bangladesh. It is the oldest university in Bangladesh. The university opened its doors to students on July 1st 1921. Currently i ...
. The organisation's name was later changed to the Bangladesh Chhatra League. Naeemuddin Ahmed was the first convener of BSL, while Khaleque Nawaz Khan was the founder general secretary of the Chhatra League.
During the 1971
Bangladesh Liberation War
The Bangladesh Liberation War ( bn, মুক্তিযুদ্ধ, , also known as the Bangladesh War of Independence, or simply the Liberation War in Bangladesh) was a revolution and War, armed conflict sparked by the rise of the Benga ...
, members of the Chhatra League were recruited into the
Mujib Bahini
The Mujib Bahini, also known as Bangladesh Liberation Force (BLF), was an armed force formed during the Bangladesh Liberation War to fight against Pakistan in 1971.
The force was mainly composed of activists drawn from the Awami League and its st ...
(also known as the Bengal Liberation Force), an armed group trained by India's foreign intelligence agency, the
Research and Analysis Wing
The Research and Analysis Wing (abbreviated R&AW; hi, ) is the foreign intelligence agency of India. The agency's primary function is gathering foreign intelligence, counter-terrorism, counter-proliferation, advising Indian policymakers, an ...
. However, their exact involvement in the war is disputed, with
Zafrullah Chowdhury
Zafrullah Chowdhury (born 27 December 1941) is a Bangladeshi public health activist. He is the founder of Gonoshasthaya Kendra (meaning the People's Health Center in Bengali), a rural healthcare organisation. Dr. Chowdhury is known more for his ...
stating, "The Mujib Bahini did not fight the liberation war." In 2014,
A. K. Khandker
Air Vice Marshal (Retd.) Abdul Karim Khandker, Bir Uttom (born 1930) is a former planning minister of the Government of Bangladesh. He is a retired diplomat and was the Deputy Chief of Staff of the Bangladesh Armed Forces during the Banglad ...
was sued for accusing the Mujib Bahini of hooliganism and looting during the war in his book in his book ''1971: Bhetore Baire''.
Violence
Rape and sexual harassment against women
Since 1990s numerous rape and sexual violence allegations have surfaced in the media involving Chhatra League leaders and activists. Chhatra League leaders and activists often use rape as a tool to suppress the women and create an environment of fear. There are well documented incidents that Chhatra League leaders have even celebrated their century of raping women.
Culture of rape in Jahangirnagar University
The general secretary of Bangladesh Chhatra League Jahangirnagar University unit, Jasimuddin Manik and his followers celebrated the rape of 100th girls including at least 20 students of the university in 1998. This led to a series of protests which resulted in the expulsion of Manik and his followers from the university on 2 August 1999 after the
1999 JU Anti-Rape Movement 1999 JU Anti-Rape Movement is a series of student protests against the culture of rape and sexual harassment in the Jahangirnagar University of Bangladesh. The movement initiated in 1998 when Bangladesh Chhatra League activists celebrated the 100th ...
.
Women harassment on Pohela Boishakh 2015
On Bangla New Year celebration of Dhaka University campus, a group of students sexually assaulted women on the venue and tried to strip them off their clothing. Law enforcement was present in the vicinity, yet the miscreants were not stopped, according to witness accounts:
"When we sought help from a few policemen standing 20 yards from the spot, they said that the area was beyond their jurisdiction,” said Amit who also came under attack by the youths and had his fingers fractured.
Amit along with five of his fellow activists had tried to save a group of women aged between 25-30 years from the rowdy youths.
"The youths were divided into three groups and each group had 10-12 of them. People everywhere around were blowing vuvuzela so loudly that nobody could hear the victims' cry for help," he said, adding thousands of people were milling around the area, making it difficult for them to prevent the attackers.
Despite having CCTV footage which clearly identified the culprits, the police made no arrests by 2019:
The probe over the incident was forced to end as the DB police failed to concretely identify any of the culprits beyond simple facial and visual CCTV recording during their eight-month-long investigation. DB Sub inspector Dipok Kumar Das submitted a final report to court on 13 December 2015, saying he had failed to identify any of the suspects.
As the ruling party Awami League has control over law enforcement and Chhatra League is the student wing of Awami League, it is widely speculated that the police assisted Chhatra League to carry out these attacks by taking no action to stop them and by making no arrests. Notably, Chhatra League also prevented its female members from protesting this incident.
Gang Rape of a schoolgirl in Narayanganj
On 08 January 2020, a schoolgirl was reportedly abducted from Gandharbpur Bus Stand area in
Narayanganj
Narayanganj ( bn, নারায়ণগঞ্জ ''Naraeongônj'') is a city in central Bangladesh. It is in the Narayanganj District, about southeast of the capital city of Dhaka, and has a population of about 2 million. It is the 6th larges ...
by a group led by Abu Sufian Sohan, vice president of
Tarabo Tarabo is a municipal city in Rupganj Upazila in Narayanganj District
Narayanganj District ( bn, নারায়ণগঞ্জ, Narayoṇgonj) is a district in central Bangladesh which is a part of the Dhaka Division. It is home to the ancient ...
Municipality Chhatra League. After a couple of days of gang rape, they left the schoolgirl at Sanarpar area in
Siddhirganj
Siddhirganj, is one of the oldest industrial cities of Bangladesh. It is located in the bank of Shitalakshya River, Narayanganj. The Siddhirganj Industrial Zone has more than 15 thousand factories and industrial establishments. Adamjee Jute Mills ...
and ran away. The same group was also accused of raping two garment workers. On 12 January, Police arrested Sohan with drugs from
Ashuganj Ashuganj or Ashugonj ( bn, আশুগঞ্জ) is a town in the Brahmanbaria District of Chittagong Division of Bangladesh in the Meghna River delta. Its altitude is 10 meters (36 feet).
The city is known for the Port of Ashuganj and for its pow ...
area. Afterwards, he was expelled from Chhatra League.
MC College rape allegations
On 28 September 2020, ''
The Daily Star'', reported that BCL had participated in factional clashes at
MC College, which resulted in 4 people dying in various incidents since 2018. The report came after BCL activists allegedly raped a woman in front of "BCL Men's Room" at MC College. The victim's husband has filed a rape against several BCL activists and the victim has named several in her court statement. A total of 7 suspects have been arrested as of 29 September 2020. DNA reports have confirmed involvement of the suspects.
Rape of tourist in Cox's Bazar
A woman tourist, housewife and mother of an eight-month-old child, was gang-raped by Joy, Ashiq, and Babu in December 2021. The trio was reported to be close aide to Cox's Bazar Zila Chhatra League President SM Saddam Hossain. The woman tourist was first separated from her husband and children, who were held as hostages by the three alleged rapists while the woman tourist was raped in the tourism capital of Bangladesh. Prominent women rights activist Shireen Huq opined that the incident is "misogyny and banditry at its worst."
Rape of a young woman in Gopalganj
Govt. Muksudpur College Chhatra League General Secretary Naim Kazi was arrested on charges of abducting and raping a young woman in February 2022. The rape victim was his own sister-in-law and the case was filed by his own father-in-law. According to the case statement, Naim forcefully abducted his sister-in-law on 21 January 2022 and raped her in an unknown place.
Rape attempt in Chattogram University
A female student of the
Chattagram University was stripped naked after some Chhatra League goons picked her up right in front of her dormitory inside the university and attempted to rape her. Later, an investigation by law enforcement agencies found that the five accused are activists of the Deputy Education Minister
Mohibul Hasan Chowdhury
Mohibul Hasan Chowdhury (born 26 July 1983) is a Bangladesh Awami League politician. He is the Deputy Minister of Education and a Jatiya Sangsad representing the Chittagong-9 constituency. He is the elder son of veteran Awami politician ABM Mohi ...
's close aide Rezaul Haque. Rezaul Haque obstructed the girl from filing complaint for which he was served a show-cause notice from Chhatra League. But before this incident, two more students were sexually assaulted by the followers of Deputy Education Minister
Mohibul Hasan Chowdhury
Mohibul Hasan Chowdhury (born 26 July 1983) is a Bangladesh Awami League politician. He is the Deputy Minister of Education and a Jatiya Sangsad representing the Chittagong-9 constituency. He is the elder son of veteran Awami politician ABM Mohi ...
inside the campus and the
Chattagram University parked the cases as they involved Chhatra League and the minister.
Rape of a housewife in Bogura
On 09 August 2022, a case was filed against
Sonatala Upazila
Sonatala Upazila ( bn, সোনাতলা উপজেলা) is an upazila of Bogra District in the Division of Rajshahi, Bangladesh.
Sonatala Thana was established in 1981 and was converted into an upazila in 1984. It is named after its admi ...
Chhatra League General Secretary Sujan Kumar Ghosh by a housewife over rape allegations. She also said that Sujan threatened him to not to share the incident with anyone. The case led to his expulsion from Chhatra League.
Rape of a speech-impaired teen in Lakshmipur
On 06 December 2022, vice president of
Kamalnagar Upazila
Kamalnagar is an upazila of Lakshmipur District in the Division of Chittagong, Bangladesh.
Administration
Kamalnagar Upazila is divided into nine union parishads: Char Folcon, Char Kadira, Char Kalkini, Char Lawrench, Char Martin, Hajirhat, Patari ...
Chhatra League Mahbub Alam Shiplu was arrested over allegations of raping a speech-impaired teen. According to the case statement, the 17-year-old rape survivor's aunt caught Shiplu red-handed while doing the heinous crime.
Murder and terrorism
Killing of Nahid Hossain
A mob allegedly led by
Dhaka College
Dhaka College ( bn, ঢাকা কলেজ also known as DC) is the oldest secular educational institution of Bangladesh located in Dhaka. It offers higher secondary education ( HSC). It has Honours and Masters programs as well which are aff ...
Chhatra League killed Nahid Hossain, a poor deliveryman, during a clash with local shopkeepers of
New Market, Dhaka
New Market () is a commercial shopping market in north of Azimpur, Dhaka. It is situated on the opposite side of Chandni Chowk.
History
The market was set up 1954 as a shopping complex, to cater to the needs of the people from the residential area ...
. Nahid Hossain, who was in his twenties, started from him home of Kamrangirchar to his workplace at Elephant Road on April 20. But a few yards away from his workplace, he was surrounded by a mob allegedly led by the activists of Chhatra League from the
Dhaka College
Dhaka College ( bn, ঢাকা কলেজ also known as DC) is the oldest secular educational institution of Bangladesh located in Dhaka. It offers higher secondary education ( HSC). It has Honours and Masters programs as well which are aff ...
, who beat him down and lynched him with sharp machettes mercilessly only to leave him die on the street.
Murder of Abrar Fahad
A student of
Bangladesh University of Engineering and Technology
Bangladesh University of Engineering and Technology, commonly known by the acronym BUET, is a public technological research university in Dhaka, Bangladesh. Founded in 1876 as the Dacca Survey School, it is the oldest institution for the study ...
was beaten to death after Bangladesh Chhatra League men allegedly questioned him suspecting his involvement with Shibir.
Alleged students are: Mehedi Hasan Rasel of civil engineering, general secretary of Buet BSL, Muhtasim Fuad of civil engineering vice-president, Mehedi Hasan Robein of chemical engineering, the organizing secretary, Anik Sarker of mechanical engineering, the secretary of information and research affairs, Ishtiaq Ahmed Munna of mechanical engineering, the publication affairs secretary, Ifti Mosharraf Shakal of biomedical engineering batch-16, the deputy social welfare secretary, Meftahul Islam Zion of naval architecture and marine engineering, the sports secretary, Muzahidur Rahman Muzahid of civil engineering, Muntasir Alam Jemi of chemical engineering and Khandaker Tabakhkharul Islam Tanvir of mechanical engineering, Moniruzzaman Monir, Water Resources Engineering Department, Akash Hossain, Civil Engineering Department and Shamsul Arefin Rafat, Mechanical Engineering Department of Buet.
Murder of Biswajit Das
Biswajit Das, a 24-year-old tailor in
Dhaka
Dhaka ( or ; bn, ঢাকা, Ḍhākā, ), formerly known as Dacca, is the capital and largest city of Bangladesh, as well as the world's largest Bengali-speaking city. It is the eighth largest and sixth most densely populated city ...
, Bangladesh, was murdered on 9 December 2012 by members of the Bangladesh Chhatra League who mistook Das for an opposition supporter. Das was chased and attacked with
machete
Older machete from Latin America
Gerber machete/saw combo
Agustín Cruz Tinoco of San Agustín de las Juntas, Oaxaca">San_Agustín_de_las_Juntas.html" ;"title="Agustín Cruz Tinoco of San Agustín de las Juntas">Agustín Cruz Tinoco of San ...
s, iron bars, and hockey sticks.
He was taken to
Mitford Hospital
The hospital, originally named after the philanthropist Robert Mitford of the civil service, who served many years in Dhaka as collector and later, as judge of the Provincial Court of Appeal, was the most important medical institution, not only in ...
, where he shortly died of his wounds.
Twenty-one BSL activists were found guilty of murder on 18 December 2013. Eight were sentenced to death and thirteen were sentenced to life in prison.
Only eight of the twenty-one defendants were in custody at the time of the sentence, with the remaining thirteen tried in absentia.
2018 conflicts
In March 2018, a student of
Shahjalal University of Science and Technology (SUST) suffered a bullet wound during a clash between two BSL factions.
Reportedly, two factions of the SUST unit of BSL, led by vice-presidents of the unit, had battled over establishing supremacy on the campus. A group of BSL men, led by Akando and colleagues, attacked another man in a restaurant near the university. The man responded with a gunshot which injured another student.
In July 2018, protests and counter-violence erupted at various universities, particularly
Rajshahi University
The University of Rajshahi, also known as Rajshahi University or RU ( bn, রাজশাহী বিশ্ববিদ্যালয়), is a public co-educational research university in Bangladesh situated near the northern Bangladeshi cit ...
, over the
quota reform movement, which sought to change the quota system that allocated 56% of Bangladesh government jobs to specific classes. In a protest procession on 2 July 2018, quota-reform movement leader Toriqul Islam and 15 others were attacked with sticks, bamboo poles, a dagger and a hammer. Islam's leg was broken as a result of the attack. A correspondent from ''
The Daily Star'' filmed the incident and the newspaper reported that it had identified eleven of the attackers, stating that ten were members of the BSL.
Video and photos of the attack circulated on social media, prompting criticism over police and university administration inaction.
Dhaka road safety protest attacks
On 29 July 2018, two students were killed and a further twelve people were injured when a bus hit a bus stop in Dhaka. Protests began shortly afterward, demanding better road safety. During the protests, BSL members were alleged to have been involved in numerous attacks on protestors throughout Bangladesh. On 5 August 2018, a number of photojournalists were attacked, allegedly by members of the BSL wearing helmets. Law enforcement officers were present but did not make any attempt to stop the attack.
Attack on journalists
Reporters Without Borders
Reporters Without Borders (RWB; french: Reporters sans frontières; RSF) is an international non-profit and non-governmental organization with the stated aim of safeguarding the right to freedom of information. It describes its advocacy as found ...
in its 2020 country report mentioned that during the 2020 Dhaka City Corporation Election, Chhatra League goons attacked and beaten at least 10 journalists brutally as they tried to cover the massive rigging during the election.
Attacks on Anti-Modi Protesters
Leader of Dhaka University's Chhatra League unit Sanjit Chandra Das declared to "peel off the skin" of the protesters if they protest against Indian Prime Minister
Narendra Modi
Narendra Damodardas Modi (; born 17 September 1950) is an Indian politician serving as the 14th and current Prime Minister of India since 2014. Modi was the Chief Minister of Gujarat from 2001 to 2014 and is the Member of Parliament from ...
's visit in March 2021 to Bangladesh. His supporters attacked progressive students, Muslims inside the national mosque compound in Dhaka, and students inside a madrasa compound in Brahmanbaria to quell their protests against Modi triggering a violent
anti-Modi protest across the country that claimed 10 lives as of 27 March.
Communal Violence
Role in 2021 attack on Hindus
Leaders and activists of the Chhatra League were found involved in the coordinated attacks on the Hindu community of Bangladesh in at least two districts during the
2021 Bangladesh communal violence,
Chandpur and
Rangpur.
In Rangpur, Saikat Mandal, the vice-president of the philosophy department Chhatra League at Rangpur's Carmichael College, who had a personal conflict with a local Hindu youth Paritosh Sarkar, collaborated with the imam of a local mosque to instigate the local Muslim population to conduct the attack on Hindu villages of the area.
In Chandpur, two Chhatra League activists initiated a protest on the alleged "demeaning of Quran" that lead to the attack on local temples and pandals.
Structure
Principles: Education, Peace, Progress
Ideology:
Bengali Nationalism
Bengalism or Bengali nationalism () was a form of nationalism that focused on Bengalis as a singular nation. The people of Bengali ethnicity speak Bengali language. Bengalis mostly live across Bangladesh and the Indian states of Tripura and ...
Number of units: 111
Main Unit:
University of Dhaka
The University of Dhaka (also known as Dhaka University, or DU) is a public research university located in Dhaka, Bangladesh. It is the oldest university in Bangladesh. The university opened its doors to students on July 1st 1921. Currently i ...
Unit
Current Organizational Guardian:
Sheikh Hasina
Sheikh Hasina Wazed (''née'' Sheikh Hasina ; ; bn, শেখ হাসিনা ওয়াজেদ, Shēkh Hasinā, , born 28 September 1947) is a Bangladeshi politician who has served as the Prime Minister of Bangladesh, Prime Minister ...
Former presidents and general secretaries
See also
*
List of student organizations in Bangladesh
List of student organizations in Bangladesh.
See also
* Bangladesh Awami League
* Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami
* Bangladesh Nationalist Party
* Socialist Party of Bangladesh
* Islami Andolan Bangladesh
Islami Andolan Bangladesh ( bn, ইসল ...
References
External links
* Website: https://bsl.org.bd/
* Community website: https://bsl.community/
Bangladesh Chhatra Leagueon
Facebook
Facebook is an online social media and social networking service owned by American company Meta Platforms. Founded in 2004 by Mark Zuckerberg with fellow Harvard College students and roommates Eduardo Saverin, Andrew McCollum, Dustin M ...
{{Bangladesh Awami League
Student organisations in Bangladesh
Student wings of political parties in Bangladesh
Bangladesh Awami League
Bangladeshi student movements
Student organizations established in 1948