Many injured as police use sound grenades to disperse teachers

Several government primary school teachers were injured on Saturday when police used sound grenades to disperse a peaceful protest march in Shahbagh, sparking outrage among education unions and civil society.

The incident occurred around 3:45pm as a group of approximately 500 assistant teachers, marching from the Central Shaheed Minar toward Shahbagh intersection, were blocked by barricades set up by law enforcement.

The teachers, part of the Bangladesh Primary School Assistant Teachers Association, were en route to hold a symbolic “pen surrender” protest – a traditional form of civil resistance in Bangladesh – demanding urgent resolution of their long-pending grievances.

According to Mohammad Shamsuddin Masud, President of the Association, the protest was peaceful until police abruptly deployed sound grenades without warning.

“Our teachers were chanting slogans, holding pens in their hands – a non-violent act. Suddenly, multiple sound grenades were hurled into the crowd. Many teachers, including women, were hurt. Some suffered hearing damage, others were thrown to the ground by the blast force. We are still identifying the injured,” Masud told Jago News.

The teachers had begun their march at 3:30pm, following a 10-hour sit-in at the Shaheed Minar, where they have been camped since 9 a.m. demanding three key reforms:

Salary fixation in the 10th grade for assistant teachers

Resolution of promotion delays after completing 10 and 16 years of service

Guaranteed 100% departmental promotion without arbitrary barriers

The Department of Primary Education, which oversees more than 65,500 government primary schools and 384,000 teachers, had earlier raised the pay grades of head teachers and senior teachers in April 2025 – but excluded assistant teachers, the backbone of rural and urban primary education.

“This is not a demand for privilege – it is justice,” said one injured teacher, who requested anonymity. “We teach children who have no voice. Now, when we raise ours, we are met with sound grenades.”

Eyewitnesses and photographs from the scene show teachers clutching their ears, some bleeding from minor head injuries, while others lay on the pavement, visibly shaken. Emergency medical teams from nearby hospitals rushed to the site, but many injured teachers were treated on the spot due to the chaotic conditions.

Education rights activists have condemned the police response. “Using sound grenades on unarmed teachers holding pens is not just excessive — it is a moral failure,” said Dr. Nusrat Jahan, a human rights advocate. “These are not rioters. They are the people shaping the minds of the next generation.”

The association has announced it will extend its sit-in indefinitely until its demands are met. “We will not leave Shaheed Minar,” Masud declared. “We will not return home until the government listens. Our pens may be small, but our resolve is not.”