Ban on rallies from Tigerpass to GEC intersection 

CHATTOGRAM, May 18: Tensions flared in Chattogram on Monday as students attempting to restore "July Uprising" graffiti at Tigerpass clashed with police enforcing a ban on public rallies across key city intersections.

Previously the Chattogram Metropolitan Police (CMP) prohibited all rallies and proc1essions from GEC Intersection-(General Electric Company) intersection- Panchlaish area to Dewanhat Intersection under Section 30 of the CMP Ordinance 1978, citing public order and safety concerns. The order was issued by CMP-Commissioner Hasan Md Shawkat Ali.

Despite the restriction, groups of students gathered at Tigerpass around midday, attempting to repaint graffiti - linked to the July movement. Police repeatedly used loudspeakers to order dispersal, but the students initially remained and later proposed continuing in small groups.

Tensions escalated shortly after 2pm when police blocked their movement as students advanced with paint and brushes. A brief scuffle followed, during which paint splashed onto both officers and protesters. 

Police detained three students, who were later released within an hour after renewed protests by fellow demonstrators.

By around 2:30pm, the crowd dispersed, although additional police were deployed to prevent further unrest.

The confrontation followed the Chattogram City Corporation's (CCC) removal of parts of the "July Uprising" graffiti from elevated expressway pillars at Tigerpass on Sunday evening, which triggered immediate protests from student activists and opposition groups.

Leaders of the National Citizen Party (NCP) accused the authorities of deliberately erasing politically significant murals. In response, activists of the Jatiyatabadi Chhatra Dal and BNP staged counter-processions that night, escalating tensions in the area.

By midnight, rival groups had gathered at separate locations-NCP activists near Tigerpass and BNP supporters around Lalkhan Bazar, prompting heightened security deployment.

Earlier, CCC Mayor Shahadat Hossain visited the Lalkhan Bazar gathering to address supporters and journalists. He said a city corporation-led graffiti programme along the Tigerpass-Lalkhan Bazar corridor had been planned for Monday morning but did not take place.

The CCC's earlier move to paint over graffiti, followed by the suspension of its own scheduled restoration programme, further intensified political tensions over control of public space and expression in the city.

Authorities have since reinforced security across central intersections as officials attempt to contain what has become a wider political dispute involving student groups and rival political activists.