DU students protest shoe-throwing at Sri Ramchandra image in Gaibandha

Dhaka University students belonging to the Sanatan Dharma community staged a protest march and rally on Monday, demanding the immediate arrest and exemplary punishment of those who threw shoes at an image of the Hindu deity, Sri Ramchandra, in Gaibandha.

Organised under the banner of 'Aware Students of Dhaka University', the demonstrators gathered at the Raju Sculpture at 7:30 pm. Students from Jagannath Hall and various women’s residential halls participated in the programme before temporarily blocking the Shahbagh intersection.

During the rally, Ram Prasad Saha Tapu, the Social Service Secretary of the Jagannath Hall Student Union, strongly condemned the act.

“Shri Ramchandra is one of our ten most beloved incarnations. Recently, a radical force spread rumours about Ramchandra, then another radical force beat shoes on the picture of our beloved deity. Through this, the religious sentiments of the Sanatan community have been hurt. We, the people of the country, want to remain united regardless of religion or caste. But a group wants to divide us, that force must be stopped,” he said.

Other student leaders expressed deep frustration over the persistent lack of justice for minority communities. Deepjoy Sarkar Deepta, the Assistant General Secretary (AGS), highlighted a double standard in handling religious sensitivities. 

Sudipta Pramanik, the General Secretary (GS) of the Hall of Parliament, criticized political parties for failing to deliver on their commitments.

“Before the election, any government makes various promises about the security of minorities, but after the election, those promises are no longer fulfilled. I will urge the current government to quickly arrest these insulters and bring them to justice. At the same time, measures must be taken to ensure that such incidents do not happen again,” Pramanik stated. 

He further warned that students would launch a larger movement next Friday if the authorities failed to ensure swift justice.

Their demands include to arrest immediately and punish exemplarily the perpetrators involved in the Gaibandha incident; To take effective government action to preserve religious harmony and prevent extremism; and to to resume the construction of the country's largest Ram statue in Gaibandha.

Carrying various placards and banners, the protesters chanted slogans calling for the protection of minority rights and strict measures against religious insults before concluding their peaceful demonstration.