Farhan Faiyaaz: A life we will remember

"One day, you'll leave this world behind. So live a life you will remember." -- Farhan Faiyaaz's Facebook profile bio.

In a chilling video footage that went viral on Facebook on Thursday, a woman was seen breaking down at the sight of a body in Mohammadpur's City Hospital.

That body belongs to 17-year-old Farhan Faiyaaz, a first-year HSC student at Dhaka Residential Model College (DRMC), who died during the clashes between protesters and ruling party activists in the capital's Dhanmondi area.

The woman in the video, his aunt Nazia Khan uttered, "He was more than a son to me… He is dead now…."

The video spread through the social media platform like fire, with people seeking justice for the young boy gone too soon.

His teachers lauded him as a bright and polite student.

"He was quiet and reserved. Everybody, including his classmates and teachers, used to love him... Even if we ever scolded him for anything, he never said a single word," said DRMC Assistant Prof Md Nazrul Islam.

Nazrul, also a chemistry teacher of the college, said there were never any instances of him getting involved in any altercations with his classmate.

"Though he was not a regular student in my class due to an illness he had, I always found him to be gentle and humble whenever he attended."

Faiyaaz used to live with his grandmother in Mohammadpur's Japan Garden City before moving in with his father in Kakrail a few months ago, he said.

Munzareen Shahid, a teacher of 10-Minute School, shared a photo of herself and Faiyaaz on Facebook. Expressing disbelief at the loss of a beloved and bright student, she wrote, "He was my student ... He was not even 18! ... He has died!"

Mourning the loss of a bright student like Faiyaaz, current and former students of Dhaka Residential Model College blackened their Facebook profile pictures, protesting his killing.

Using different hashtags, they demanded justice for the death of all the victims in the violence against quota reform protesters. They also demanded punishment to all those involved in the killings.

Some critisised the law enforcement's actions on the protesters, stating the attacks were carried out to quell the movement.