Teachers barred on way to Secretariat

 

 

Non-government school and college teachers try to force through iron barricades as they are obstructed by police while heading for Prime Minister's Office from Jatiya Press Club in the capital Wednesday. Photo: STARStar Online Report

Police intercepted the teachers and employees of non-government schools and colleges on Thursday when they were going to besiege Bangladesh Secretariat to press home their demand for including the institutions in the government's Monthly Pay Order (MPO) list.
At least 20 people sustained minor injuries as the law enforcers mildly charged batons and also lobbed at least 10 teargas canisters near Kadam Foara to resist the demonstrators around 12:15pm, witnesses said.
Protesting the police action, the teachers staged a sit-in in front of the press club for one hour, suspending traffic movement on the road stretching from Kadam Foara to Purana Paltan.
Later, they brought out a protest procession in the area around 1:15pm when this report was filed.
The teachers, who are continuing their demonstration for the forth consecutive day, alleged that they were going to lay siege to Bangladesh Secretariat as per their prescheduled programme but police charged truncheons on them.
SM Shiblee Noman, assistant commissioner of police (Ramna Zone), denied the allegation. He however admitted that police fired teargas shells on the protestors.
He said police were compelled to fire teargas shells as they removed police barricades put near Kadam Foara forcibly and pelted brick chips on the law enforcers.
"We had to do that for ensuring safety to public life and property," the AC said.
Hundreds of agitators under the banner of Non-MPO Shikkha Pratishthan Shikkhak Karmachari Oikyajote gathered around 9:30am in front of the press club where they held a rally. Later, they started for the Secretariat.
On Wednesday, the agitators staged a sit-in wearing shrouds in front of the press club and submitted a memorandum to the Prime Minister's Office (PMO).
In the memorandum, they mentioned their five-point demand, including enlisting all government approved educational institutions in the MPO facility in this fiscal year and abolishing the practice of Demand Order letter (D/O), sanctioned by lawmakers, for MPO enlistment.