Cumilla Correspondent

A clash erupted between two groups over the firing of an imam at the mosque of Cumilla Victoria Government College.

During the incident, the college's principal, Professor Mohammad Abul Bashar Bhuiyan, along with several other teachers, was injured.

At the time, all teachers, including the vice-principal and principal, were trapped inside the college's administrative building.

The attack began after 12 pm on Friday (February 28), before the Jummah prayers.

Local youths and teenagers attacked the principal before the prayer began on Friday. During the attack, they struck the principal. When students from the nearby Nazrul Hall gathered, locals attacked them as well. Police arrived on the scene, but initially retreated due to the locals' aggression, later re-entering the college. Tension remains high.

Gazi Mohammad Golam Sohrab Hasan, Secretary of the College Teachers' Council, stated, “The principal and other teachers have been injured in the attack. We are now confined.” He mentioned that the incident stemmed from the dismissal of the Imam.

It is known that on January 13, a clash occurred between two factions of the Tablighi Jamaat—followers of Maulana Saad and Maulana Jubayer—at the college’s Degree Branch mosque. Following this, on January 20, Principal Professor Mohammad Abul Bashar Bhuiyan announced the temporary suspension of the weekly Tablighi Jamaat teaching sessions. Due to ongoing disagreements, on January 21, students from Nazrul Hall and local residents from Dharmpur confined the principal from 11:20 am to 12:40 pm.

In the first week of February, the college administration dismissed Imam Mohammad Maruf Billah after multiple allegations. Subsequently, on February 18, a new recruitment advertisement was published. After the imam's dismissal, clashes erupted at the college. A local faction has been demanding the reinstatement of the imam before every Friday prayer, leading to regular clashes between locals, college students, and teachers.

Mahinul Islam, the Officer-in-Charge (OC) of Kotwali Model Police Station in Cumilla, said, “We received reports of scuffles and went to the scene. I am heading there now.”