Kazi Zahidul Hasan :
Hundreds of private university students took to the city streets again on Sunday to protest against the imposition of Value Added Tax (VAT) on tuition fees by the government.
Earlier in the morning, the agitating students marched through the different city roads from their respective campuses as part of the three days strike programme that was launched on Saturday to press home their demand for lifting the VAT.
Chanting anti-VAT slogans, they staged sit-in demonstrations taking position in key intersections at Maligabh-Shantinagar, Rampura Bridge, Basundhara Residential Area, Uttara, Banani, Mohakhali and Dhanmondi, bringing rush hour traffic to a standstill in Dhaka city.
These intersections were closed for about four to six hours and long tailbacks were on the busy roads, forcing
thousands of commuters stranded for long hours with untold sufferings. The authorities deployed additional police force in these areas to avert any untoward situation, but they seem to be outnumbered by the students.
Police, however, facilitated the students’ peaceful protest in a bid to minimise disruption to traffic, local businesses and ensure the safety of the public, according to our reporters who reported from the spots.
Many former students of private universities also joined the protest under the banner of “No VAT on Education” on the day.
In Dhanmondi, students of Daffodil University and Bangladesh University brought out separate possessions from in front of their varsity gates around 10:30am and staged sit-in demonstration blocking Mirpur road.
Vehicular movement from Mirpur road to Manik Mia Avenue virtually came to a halt following the blockade.
“We are fighting for the rights of every student. No one was forced to come. In fact, we came here to protest against VAT,” Mehedi Hasan, a student of Daffodil University, told The New Nation while chanting anti-VAT slogans.
Criticizing the Finance Minister’s decision, he said, imposition of VAT on our tuition fees is ‘arbitrary’ because it should be provided only to purchasing goods and services. So, why we should be forced to pay VAT on education which is a basic right as per Constitution of the country? He said. “Imposition of 7.5 per cent VAT on tuition fees of private university students is discriminatory… We cannot accept the move because it will raise education cost,” Tazrin Mosarraf Orin, a former student of ULAB, told this correspondent while joining the protest.
Protesting the move, she said, the government can collect revenues from other sources not on education as all the private university students do not come from rich families.
“Many students have to go to the private universities since the number of public varsities is very limited to accommodate them,” she said, adding that if the government thinks the private universities charge high tuition fees, it should have taken steps to reduce it considering the interest of the students.
Besides, several hundred students of the University of Development Alternative (UDA), Stamford University and State University took position from City College intersection to Sat Rasta intersection from 10:30am blocking the road. In Panthapath area, students of Dhaka International University, Atish Dipankar University, World University and Victoria University took to the street blocking the traffic from Russell Square to Science Laboratory and from Panthapath to Bashundhara City.
Students of Presidency University took position at Gulshan intersection that created severe traffic congestion on the Gulshan-Mohakhali road.
In Rampura area, students of East West University brought a procession at about 11:00am in front of the university putting barricade the Rampura-Badda road, halting vehicular movement from Rampura to Progoti Sarani and Rampura to Mouchak.
They chanted slogans demanding withdrawal of the VAT on tuition fees.
BRAC University students brought out a rally in the morning and blocked Mohakhali-Gulshan road around 12:30pm. Meanwhile, the students of North South University (NSU) and Independent University Bangladesh (IUB) brought out rallies from their respective campuses and blocked the road in front of the gate of the Basundhara Residential Area.
In Uttara, students of BGMEA University of Fashion and Technology (BUFT), Asian University, Shanto-Mariam University of Creative Technology, East West Medical University and Bangladesh Medical University took to the street at Azampur around 11:00am to protest against VAT.
They blocked Uttara-Tongi road that led to the disruption traffic on both sides of the Airport-Tongi road, causing immense sufferings to the commuters.
Students, however, called off Sunday’s protest at 6:00pm with the announcement of holding a similar programme for Monday.
After the withdrawal of the programme, traffic movement has come to normal. Meanwhile, students of various private varsities in Chittagong and Sylhet also brought out processions to protest against the government move. They also chanted slogans to withdraw the VAT immediately.
According to statistics provided by the University Grants Commission (UGC), there are currently 84 private universities in the country with 328,736 students.
Earlier, the government imposed a 7.5 per cent VAT on the tuition fees of the private universities and medical colleges.
