At least six students of the Marketing Department of Dhaka University (DU) were injured after being hit by a private car in front of a gate near the Faculty of Business Studies (FBS) and Mal Chattar on the campus.
The accident occurred around 11:30am on Tuesday. The injured students were rescued and taken to Dhaka Medical College Hospital (DMCH). Angry students reportedly vandalized the car following the incident.
All six injured students are from the 2025-26 academic session of the university's Marketing Department. Eyewitnesses said some of them were in critical condition.
The car involved in the accident belongs to Professor Dr Md Shahidul Islam of DU's Department of Mathematics. His son, Sadman Sakib, was driving the vehicle.
According to eyewitnesses, Sadman was driving his father's car around the campus while learning to drive for the first time. At one point, as he reached the gate near the Faculty of Business Studies and Mal Chattar, the car hit students travelling in a rickshaw and others standing on the road, throwing them off and injuring them. Two of the injured students reportedly suffered cuts to their legs and were bleeding.
In a short video recorded after the incident, Sadman Sakib was heard saying, “I was driving a car for the first time today. While trying to brake, I mistakenly pressed the accelerator. I'm sorry.”
Fahim Rahman, a student of the Marketing Department's 2022-23 academic session and an eyewitness, said, “Hearing a loud noise, I came out onto the road and saw the car hit the rickshaw hard. The students inside the rickshaw were thrown out, and several of them were injured.”
Eyewitnesses said angry students beat two people who were in the car and vandalized the vehicle following the accident. Sadman Sakib was later taken to the university's proctor's office. Classmates of the injured students staged a sit-in outside the office, demanding justice.
DU Proctor Md IsrafiI Ratan confirmed the accident, saying several students had been injured and given primary treatment.
He also said the driver did not have a driving licence at the time of the accident. Sadman was still at the proctor's office, he added, assuring that the punishment prescribed by law for such incidents would be ensured, reports UNB.
Professor Dr Md Shahidul Islam, Sadman's father, said, “I will accept whatever decision the university administration makes.”