Last Updated on July 15, 2026 6:01 pm by INDIAN AWAAZ
Zakir Hossain, Dhaka
Thousands of Higher Secondary Certificate (HSC) candidates staged fresh protests across Bangladesh on Wednesday, blocking major roads in Dhaka and other cities while demanding the resignation of Education Minister Dr ANM Ehsanul Hoque Milon over the government’s decision to continue board examinations despite severe monsoon flooding.
In Dhaka, students blocked both carriageways near Science Laboratory from around 2.30 pm, causing massive traffic snarls and forcing commuters to abandon public transport and walk. After Wednesday’s exams ended around 1.30 pm, another group blocked the Dhaka-Mymensingh Highway in Uttara near the BNS Center as part of their announced “Long March to the Education Ministry”. Students from RAJUK Uttara Model College, Nawab Habibullah College and Uttara High School joined the protest, while a heavy police presence was deployed outside Shikkha Bhaban.
The demonstrations followed nationwide protests on Tuesday in Dhaka, Chattogram, Rajshahi, Sylhet, Barishal, Jashore, Tangail, Rangpur, Cox’s Bazar and Cumilla.
The protests, among Bangladesh’s biggest student movements in recent years, began over demands to postpone HSC and equivalent examinations because of widespread flooding but have since evolved into a nationwide campaign seeking Milon’s resignation. Students accuse the Education Ministry of ignoring their safety, mishandling examinations and failing to address question paper errors. They are also demanding a public apology to students and teachers and an end to what they call “experiments” with the country’s examination system.
The unrest was triggered by the government’s decision to continue examinations despite devastating floods that have killed at least 51 people and affected more than one million, according to official figures. Students said many candidates had to wade through knee- to waist-deep water or travel by boat to reach examination centres, while others missed exams because of flooded roads and damaged transport links.
Anger intensified after alleged errors in the Physics First Paper under the Sylhet Education Board. Students said creative questions 6 and 7 contained multiple mistakes, while some questions were set at a university entrance level. The ministry later awarded full marks for the disputed questions and issued show-cause notices to four professors and assistant professors involved in preparing and reviewing the paper.
The protests gained further momentum after an audio clip purportedly featuring Milon went viral in which he allegedly referred to protesting students as “farm-er murgi” (farm chickens). The remark sparked widespread criticism and led to the creation of a satirical social media page titled “Broiler Chicken Party”.
Carrying placards reading “No politics in education” and “We want the education minister’s resignation”, students marched from Dhaka University to the Science Laboratory intersection before heading towards the Dhaka Education Board. Police asked protesters to nominate a five-member delegation for talks, but student leaders rejected the proposal. Police later stopped demonstrators near VC Chattar. Some protesters allegedly threw brick chips at the Education Board building, while police barricaded roads near the Dhaka University Vice-Chancellor’s residence.
Outside the capital, students blocked the Dhaka-Aricha Highway in Savar and the Dhaka-Barishal Highway in Barishal and staged protests in Narayanganj, Bogura, Tangail, Mymensingh, Rajshahi and Jashore. In Chattogram, protesters reportedly tore down the main gate of the Chattogram Education Board while demanding suspension of examinations until flood conditions improved.
Responding to the unrest, Milon said students who missed examinations because of floods or administrative shortcomings could take re-examinations.
“These students are our future. Under no circumstances can we deprive them of their rights, and we will not do so,” he told Parliament. He added, “So far, only one college, Comilla Government College, has presented a significant challenge after its grounds were inundated,” and said, “We have already adopted such a measure under the Chittagong Education Board, and that option remains available.”
The government also suspended examinations in five flood-hit districts under the Chattogram Education Board—Chattogram, Cox’s Bazar, Rangamati, Bandarban and Khagrachhari—and said students unable to appear because of adverse weather would be allowed to take rescheduled examinations later.
Facing criticism over the “farm chickens” remark, Milon later expressed regret in Parliament, saying his comments were not intended to offend students.
Despite government concessions—including re-examinations, full marks for flawed Physics questions, disciplinary action against exam setters, suspension of examinations in flood-hit districts and the minister’s apology—student organisations said their central demand remained unchanged, insisting the examination system should not become an “experiment” at students’ expense.