A team of Criminal Investigation Department (CID) on Tuesday arrested five former students of Shahjalal University of Science and Technology (SUST) on charge of sending money to the protesting students at the university.
The arrestees are Reza Nur Moin, 31, son of Moin Uddin of Bogura district, Habibur Rahman, 26, son of Matier Rahman Khan, Nazmul Sakib, 32, son of Mizanur Rahman of Khulna district, AKM Maruf Hossain, 28, son of Mosharraf of Mirpur in Dhaka and Foysal Ahmed, 27, son of Sadiqul Islam.
Read:Day 7 of hunger strike: Medical support for protesting SUST students withdrawn
All the arrestees are being interrogated at Jalalabad Police Station, said police.
A team of CID brought them here around 6 pm and handed them over to police, said Nisharul Arif, Commissioner of Sylhet Metropolitan Police (SMP).
The former students were held from different parts of the district and city for sending money to the SUST students now on hunger strike demanding their VC’s removal.
The students embarked on fast-unto-death on the university campus on January 19, demanding the resignation of SUST Vice-Chancellor Farid Uddin Ahmed over police crackdown on its students.
The students vowed to continue with their hunger strike till the VC quits.
The hunger strike was launched on January 19 by 24 students and later one of them had to leave due to family obligations. On January 22, three more students joined their fellows in the hunger strike.
The strike was launched after police swooped on the protesting students, charging batons and firing sound grenades and shotgun bullets.
Read: SUST protest: Proctor-led team fails to reach food, medicines to embattled VC
The alleged attack was carried out to free the VC from confinement in the university’s IICT building, and it had left 40 people hurt, including teachers, students and cops.
Zafrin Ahmed, a provost of Begum Sirajunnesa Chowdhury Hall, a dorm for females, was at the centre of the initial unrest as she allegedly misbehaved with some students on January 13 when they met her with some complaints.
She later resigned from her post, citing health issues.
Provost Zafrin Ahmed’s removal was one of the initial demands of the students protesting on the campus. But it has now spread to the general students as well.