Information on a Jogannath (Jagannath) College could not be found among the sources consulted by the DIRB.

The following information, however, refers to a January 1996 clash between students at Jagannath Hall of Dhaka University and police. Jagannath Hall is a residence for minority Hindu students and is a "stronghold of [the] Bangladesh Chatra League, [the] student wing of the opposition Awami League" (AFP 9 Feb. 1996).

On 31 January 1996 opposition students protesting a visit by Prime Minister Zia clashed with police at Jagannath Hall (Reuters 4 Feb. 1996; DPA 31 Jan. 1996; News India 9 Feb. 1996), and approximately 150 to 200 injuries and 95 arrests resulted (AFP 1 Feb. 1996; Reuters 4 Feb. 1996). The attached report by RosalineCosta provides additional information on this incident. Costa is the human rights coordinator for South Asia at Hotline Bangladesh and is also involved with the Dhaka branch office of the UNHCR (Hotline Bangladesh 14 Dec. 1995). A clearer copy of the report could not be obtained by the DIRB.

The following information may also be of interest.

Raids for illegal arms were carried out by law enforcement agencies at Jagannath Hall on 9 February 1996 (The Bangladesh Observer 10 Feb. 1996, 1, 12), 2 April 1996 (Dhaka Courier 5 Apr. 1996, 9), and 8 April 1996 (The Bangladesh Observer 9 Apr. 1996, 1-2). Sources did not report any clashes between students of Jagannath Hall and the authorities during these raids.

This Response was prepared after researching publicly accessible information currently available to the DIRB within time constraints. This Response is not, and does not purport to be, conclusive as to the merit of any particular claim to refugee status or asylum. Please find below the list of additional sources consulted in researching this Information Request.

Agence France Presse (AFP). 9 February 1996. "Several Thousand Army and Paramilitary Troops..." (NEXIS)

_____. 1 February 1996. Golam Tahaboor. "Police Teargas Rampaging Students in Dhaka Campus, Zia Opens Fair." (NEXIS)

The Bangladesh Observer [Dhaka]. 9 April 1996. "Ten Outsiders Arrested: Police Raid 11 DU Halls, But No Gains."

_____. 10 February 1996. "11 DU Halls Raided, 13 Arrested."

Deutsche Presse-Agentur (DPA). 31 January 1996. BC Cycle. "Student Killed, 50 Injured in Clash at Dhaka University." (NEXIS)

Dhaka Courier. 5 April 1996. Vol. 12, No. 36. Aumit Akash. "DU Halls Raided: Question Hangs."

Hotline Bangladesh, Dhaka. 14 December 1995. Letter faxed to the DIRB.

News India. 9 February 1996. "150 Students Injured." (The Ethnic News Watch/NEXIS)

Reuters. 4 February 1996. BC Cycle. "Dhaka University Rocked by Gunbattle." (NEXIS)

Agence France Presse (AFP). 1 February 1996. Golam Tahaboor. "Police Teargas Rampaging Students in Dhaka Campus, Zia Opens Fair." (NEXIS)

The Bangladesh Observer [Dhaka]. 9 April 1996. "Ten Outsiders Arrested: Police Raid 11 DU Halls, But No Gains," pp. 1, 12.

_____. 10 February 1996. "11 DU Halls Raided, 13 Arrested," pp. 1, 12.

Costa, Rosaline. 5 February 1996. "Barbaric Attack on the Minority Students at Jagannath Hall, Dhaka University by the Law Enforcing Agencies on 31 January 1996," pp. 1-6.

Dhaka Courier. 5 April 1996. Vol. 12, No. 36. Aumit Akash. "DU Halls Raided: Question Hangs," p. 9.

News India. 9 February 1996. "150 Students Injured." (The Ethnic News Watch/NEXIS)

Reuters. 4 February 1996. BC Cycle. "Dhaka University Rocked by Gunbattle." (NEXIS)

Asian Survey [Berkeley, Calif.]. Monthly. July 1995 to February 1996.

Asiaweek [Hong Kong]. Weekly. July 1995 to present.

Bulletin of Concerned Asian Scholars [Boulder, Col.]. Quarterly. January 1994 to June 1995.

Dhaka Courier [Dhaka]. Weekly. March 1996 to present.

Documentation, Information and Research Branch (DIRB), Immigration and Refugee Board, Ottawa. March 1996. Bangladesh: Chronology of Events, January 1994-December 1995.

_____. November 1995. Contextual Information Package: Bangladesh.

_____. November 1995. Human Rights Information Package: Bangladesh.

Freedom Review [New York]. Bimonthly. May-June 1995 to present.

Human Rights in Developing Countries Yearbook 1995. 1995. Steinar Askuik, 'Bangladesh."

Human Rights Watch World Report 1996. 1995.

Journal of South Asian and Middle Eastern Studies [Villanova, Pa.]. Quarterly. 1995 to present.

Keesing's Record of World Events [Cambridge]. Monthly. January 1995 to January 1996.

World of Learning 1994. 1994.

On-line search of media sources.