Protests over HSC results: Dhaka Board chairman to quit

Amid demonstrations demanding reassessment of HSC graders by a group of students, Dhaka Board Chairman Prof Tapan Kumar Sarkar announced his resignation yesterday.

The announcement came after the students confined officials, including the board's chairman, and demanded cancellation of their results.

Speaking to this newspaper last night, Prof Tapan said the students were demanding an "auto pass", a decision beyond the board's jurisdiction.

"We followed the education ministry's decision in evaluating and publishing the results. Nevertheless, I announced my resignation. I told the students I would visit the education minister tomorrow [today] with my resignation letter and demands of the students," he added.

Earlier in the day, students forced their way into the board premises breaking through the main gate around 1:00pm.

Board officials alleged that the students vandalised furniture. Witnesses reported a scuffle when protesters attempted to enter the chairman's office.

By 3:00pm, the students claimed that they were attacked while trying to access the office, leading to several injuries. In response, they staged a sit-in to press for their demands.

As of 9:30pm, approximately 25-30 board officials, including the chairman, remained confined to the building, while police and military personnel were deployed to maintain order.

The HSC and equivalent exam results were released on October 15. This year, students sat for only half the exams, with the rest of their results determined based on their Secondary School Certificate performance.

Before marching to the Dhaka Board, students gathered at the Central Shaheed Minar around 12:30pm. They alleged that the results were "discriminatory" and called for a recalculation of their grades.

The students claimed that errors in subject mapping and improper evaluation of answer scripts had resulted in unfair grading, and vowed to continue their demonstrations until their results were reassessed.

The students eventually left around 10:00pm but vowed to return at 11:00am today.

Similar protests were reported in other educational boards.

In Chattogram, HSC candidates gathered at the Chattogram Education Board around 11:00am, chanting slogans and alleging discrimination in results. Police and military personnel restored order around 4:30pm.

In Jashore, hundreds of students accused the Jashore Education Board of issuing "fake results", claiming that despite an easier English exam, many had failed.

The board dismissed their demands as "baseless".

In Cumilla and Mymensingh, students also protested in front of their respective boards, demanding re-evaluation of their results.

This year's HSC exams, which began on June 30, were disrupted due to the July quota reform protests. After the fall of the Sheikh Hasina government on August 5, the interim government rescheduled the exams, and results were published on October 15, with a pass rate of 77.78 percent.