Water cannon used to disperse trainee SIs on hunger strike

The police have used water cannon to disperse the trainee sub-inspectors (SIs) who were on hunger strike in front of the Secretariat demanding their reinstatement.

They were sprayed with water cannons around 1:15am on Wednesday, said the SIs.

The trainee sub-inspectors (SIs), who were dismissed on charges of breach of discipline, have been on hunger strike in front of the Secretariat since last Monday afternoon.

No one from the government has contacted them till the last news was received around 11pm on Tuesday.

They held a sit-in in front of the Secretariat on January 5 and 6 demanding their reinstatement. They suspended the sit-in on January 6 after receiving assurances from the Secretary of the Public Security Division of the Ministry of Home Affairs. At that time, they had set a deadline of January 12 to accept their demands. As their demands were not accepted within this time, they took up a position in front of the secretariat again at 10:30am on Monday.

A total of 321 SIs undergoing training in the 40th SI cadet batch at the Bangladesh Police Academy in Saradha were dismissed. They were accused of making a commotion in the field without having breakfast and being inattentive during the training.

Meanwhile, the trainee SIs of the 40th batch received their rank badges yesterday after completing their training. Their passing out parade will be held today, Wednesday.