Old video circulated claiming to depict clash in DUCSU election
A video has spread on social media claiming that before the results of the Dhaka University Central Students’ Union (DUCSU) election were announced, students were injured in a clash between Chatra Dal and Chhatra Shibir, the student wings of BNP and Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami, respectively. But, verification shows that the video is old and has no connection with the DUCSU election. In fact, the footage is related to a clash between students and local residents in the Chittagong University area in August this year.
The 24-second video circulating on Facebook shows the inside of a hospital. Several injured people are lying and sitting there. At the 16th second mark of the video, a man in a pink T-shirt comes in front of the camera and says, “Many of our brothers are injured. Wherever you are, come quickly.”
The caption of the post says, “Just received… Breaking News^A: massive clash between Chatra Dal and Shibir before the DUCSU election results! Many students have been injured, and even reports of deaths are being heard. Tonight is going to be one of the most disgraceful nights in the history of Dhaka University! Outsiders are entering inside.” At the time of writing this report, the video had been viewed over 150,000 times and shared at least 1,600 times.
From several Facebook pages (1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7), the same video has been shared with the same claim since the night of 10 September.
Reverse image search with some keyframes from the video revealed an identical video with the same length was posted on August 31 this year from a Facebook page called “CU Insiders.” The caption of the video read, “Chittagong University Medical is drenched in students’ blood today. Locals brutally hacked innocent students with a ramda, machetes, and rods in a pre-planned attack. Around 11:00 p.m., a sister was physically assaulted. When a few people nearby protested, the gatekeeper used locals to attack the students and slapped them. The incident started from there. The attackers must be arrested before morning. If the administration does not act quickly, the situation could get worse.”
A 24-second video posted on the same day from another Facebook page called Shesh Adhyay matched exactly with the video recently circulated. On the same date, the video was also posted from multiple other Facebook profiles (1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6).
Therefore, the video has no connection with the Dhaka University Central Students’ Union election that took place on September 9.
Mentionable, from around 12:15 a.m. on August 30 until noon the following Sunday, several rounds of clashes took place between local residents and Chittagong University students near the university’s Gate-2. In the clashes, Pro-Vice Chancellor (Administration) Professor Md. Kamal Uddin, Proctor Professor Tanvir Mohammad Haidar Arif, and at least 200 students were injured. Around 10 to 12 local residents were also wounded. Bangla daily Prothom Alo published a report on August 31 stating that the victims were taken to Chittagong Medical College Hospital (CMCH) for treatment.
The Dhaka University Central Students’ Union (DUCSU) and hall union elections were held on September 9. In that election, the candidates from the “Oikkoboddho Shikkharthi Jote” (United Students’ Alliance), supported by Bangladesh Islami Chhatra Shibir, have won the posts of VP (Vice President), GS (General Secretary), and AGS (Assistant General Secretary), and 9 of the 12 other secretary positions. Following the announcement of the results, when Chatra Dal and Chhatra Shibir activists began gathering at Shahbagh on the night of September 9, tensions arose. However, no clashes occurred at the time there.
Disclaimer: The original version of this report was published in Bengali on Dismislab’s Bengali website on September 11, 2025. The English translation was completed later; however, to maintain time accuracy and avoid any potential misinterpretation, the English version has been published with the original publication date.
