By Md Mamun Islam
 
RANGPUR, Jan 11, 2025 (BSS) – Like many other students of Begum Rokeya University, Rangpur (BRUR), Tawhidul Haque Siam actively participated in the anti-discrimination student movement with Shaheed Abu Sayeed since the beginning of July.
 
He was by Abu Sayeed's side when Abu Sayeed was shot dead by police while participating in and leading the anti-discrimination student movement in front of the university on July 16.
 
Siam and many other brave fellow students were seriously injured in police firing while trying to save the bullet-scarred Abu Sayeed.
 
At least 60 bullet splinters entered various parts of Siam's body, including six in the head, when blood flowed from his body.
 
As a result, Siam is now suffering from unbearable headaches and various physical complications due to not being able to receive proper treatment for extreme financial hardship.
 
His normal life and studies are being greatly disrupted. Siam is moving towards such an uncertain future day by day.
 
Siam is currently a third-year student of Bachelor of Business Administration (BBA) in the Management Information Systems Department of the university.
 
He had been supporting his education and himself by tutoring for the last three years. Despite facing many hardships, Siam had no complaints.
 
Siam was born in village Charkakra under Companiganj upazila in Noakhali district. His expatriate father, Md Shahidul Haque, 50, works as a laborer in Dubai city for the last few years.
 
Siam's mother, Dil Ara Begum, 42, is a housewife and mother of four sons. Siam is the eldest.
 
His brother, Md Sabri, 21, is studying in the twelfth grade in a local college. Another brother, Md Saimun, 17, is a first-year Alim student, and his youngest brother, Abdur Rahman Salem, 12, is a sixth-grade student.
 
Only the meager income of his expatriate father somehow manages to support the Siam’s family and pays for the education of his brothers.
 
While talking to this BSS reporter, Siam narrated the things that happened to him, Shaheed Abu Sayeed and other fellow students in those volatile July days.
 
Siam said students began the movement against quota in early July when some BRUR students started forming human chains in front of the university.
 
Notable students among them were Abu Sayeed, Sohan, Shamsur Rahman Suman, Nahid Hasan Shakil, Rahamat Ali, Sabina Yasmin and others.
 
At one stage, the presently banned Bangladesh Chhatra League (BCL) leaders threatened BRUR students in residential halls, students’ messes or prevented them from participating in protest programmes.
 
“When coordinators of the anti-discrimination student movement announced a nationwide Bangla Blockade programme, BRUR students took a peaceful stand on the Dhaka-Rangpur highway in support of the programme,” he said.
 
During the sit-in programme on the Dhaka-Rangpur highway, the university’s then BCL president Pomel Barua with his other associates tried to prevent students from participating in the Bangla Blockade programme.
 
The movement took a turning point on July 11 when BRUR students prepared for the movement and circled the campus with a protest procession.
 
“When the procession reached the then Gate No 1 of the university, currently Shaheed Abu Sayeed Gate, the then Proctor and Proctoral Body member teachers initially blocked students,” Siam said.
 
When teachers' obstruction was ignored, at one point BCL blocked students and attacked them and raised hands on Abu Sayeed.
 
“Later, around 1 am on July 14, when fascist Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina called students Razakars, BRUR students protested her words and students of the campus halls and messes took to streets to protest her calling them Razakars,” he said.
 
On that day, Abu Sayeed, Suman, Sohag and Ahsan Habib and others led a protest procession that marched through the university’s surrounding areas and returned to the campus.
 
At that time, BCL cadres raised provocative slogans towards students with weapons and hurled bricks and stones injuring many students.
 
The next day, on July 15, when common students held a programme, BCL held a counter-programme to prevent general students.
 
“To stop the movement, many terrorists including police, university's BCL, Metropolitan BCL and outsiders armed with weapons attacked common students and their messes injuring many students,” Siam said.
 
As part of the central programme declared by the anti-discrimination student movement for July 16, BRUR students and students of schools and colleges in Rangpur city participated in the massive protest processions on the day.
 
When the protest processions advanced from the direction of Lalbag towards the university, police stopped students, and at one point, a scuffle broke out between police and students.
 
“Police threw tear gas and sound grenades at students and dispersed them. At one point, five policemen started hitting Abu Sayeed on his head with steel and wooden sticks,” Siam said.
 
In this situation, Siam went to protect Abu Sayeed from police when police hit him on his body and hands too. As police hit Abu Sayeed with sticks, blood flowed from his head.
 
When police were hitting Abu Sayeed with sticks, a policeman tried to shoot Abu Sayeed and me with a revolver from the university gate. When Siam pointed his camera towards them, another policeman prevented that policeman from shooting at them.
 
Later, when students took control of Gate No 1 again, police and university officials entered the campus gate. And from inside the gate, police threw tear gas and sound grenades at students.
 
In addition, some university staff and officials hurled insults and bricks at students too.
 
At one point, an injured Abu Sayeed said in front of my camera, "I am Abu Sayeed, a student of the Department of English," and shouted at the police, "Shoot me…shoot me…"
 
Siam then called other students to take Abu Sayeed to hospital.
 
At one point, police occupied Gate No 1 by firing bullets, tear gas, and sound grenades from inside. All students moved away, but Abu Sayeed and I didn’t move.
 
At one stage during police attacks, Abu Sayeed was standing with his chest outstretched towards police, when a policeman from Gate No 1 fired at him first.
 
When the first bullet hit Abu Sayeed in the stomach, he was shocked and, unable to understand anything, stood there again with his chest outstretched.
           
“Then, as I was about to protect Abu Sayeed from bullets, a policeman shot him again with two rounds in a row, causing him to fall.

 Then, I reached him and after seeing me, some other students caught him and lifted him up when he fell again,” Siam said.
 
He said, “Four to five students were taking Abu Sayeed away when police fired again at me and other students who carried Abu Sayeed. The police shot me again, leaving the left side of my body scarred.”
 
“About 60 bullet splinters entered the left side of my head, face, hand, arms, stomach, waist, and leg.

 I was seriously injured,” he said.
 
Siam said, “Ahmadul Haque Alveer, a 13th batch student of the Department of Accounting with another student took me to Rangpur Medical College Hospital in a rickshaw.”
 
He said, |As soon as I reached there, I saw many injured students. Some had head injuries, some had bullet wounds and so on.”
 
Seeing so many injured students, Siam went on Facebook live again without seeking medical treatment. He was covered in blood. And he called doctors and nurses to help the injured students.
 
Many policemen were then waiting outside different wards of the hospital to arrest the injured students who entered there for treatment.
 
“Besides this, I kept thinking about Abu Sayeed because his condition was very serious.

 While going live on Facebook, I went to check on Abu Sayeed. I found that he was kept on the second floor, where I saw Abu Sayeed dead at 3:45 pm,” he said.
 
“By seeing an iconic person being shot in front of me and seeing his body, I couldn't control myself. Meanwhile, blood clots formed in my body and dried up and after a while the doctor gave me first aid,” he said.
 
After receiving first aid in the evening, Siam didn't feel safe in hospital and feared that the police would come inside and arrest him at any moment.
 
“Out of this fear, I left the hospital without informing the doctors. Then I stayed at my students’ mess with bullet wounds.

Later, I underwent my first surgery at Al Madina Hospital, a private hospital in Rangpur,” he said.
 
The hospital authorities, considering Siam’s security, treated him with utmost secrecy.
 
And a few days later, Siam underwent second surgery at another private sector Mediland Hospital in Rangpur city maintaining utmost secrecy.
 
“Even after undergoing two surgeries in a shorter span of time, I still have five splinters in sensitive areas of my head alone where I always feel severe pains.

 There are many bullet splinters in several places on my face, hands, waist and legs,” he said.
           
Being injured in the anti-discrimination student movement, one of the means of financing his education was tuition. Siam lost his tuition.
 
“I faced financial losses while spreading information in the movement, my phone camera broke. I am in debt after facing so many financial losses.

 The severe pain of splinters in my head with poverty has made me even more mentally damaged,” he said.
 
Siam said, “Now I can't take mental stress anymore. Illness and headaches are my daily companions.

I had to buy a laptop for academic studies and saved money over the years. But, I spent that money to meet my medical expenses.”
 
“Today I am struggling to continue my academic studies properly. I don't know what awaits me in the future,” he said.
 
Siam is now going through mental illness, financial problems and physical illness in his uncertain life.
 
On one hand, his academic career and on other hand, his poverty, physical and mental illnesses made him totally disheartened.
 
On the day of his last surgery on August 5, orthopedic surgeon of Mediland Hospital in Rangpur, Dr Md Aminur Rahman, who performed his surgery, said that the places where the bullet splinters are in the head are very risky.
 
“There is a high risk if the surgery is performed on the head. The doctor advised me to carry them on my body if they don’t cause physical problems.

 If there is any other treatment option, he advised me to take it immediately,” Siam said.
 
Because of the bullet splinters in his head, Siam is experiencing severe pain there. He is always going through his life with headaches. He can’t concentrate on anything including studies and sleep at night.
 
Siam urgently is needed for proper treatment to get full recovery from intolerable pains of  splinters.