Students block streets in Dhaka over VAT

Students of private Bangladesh universities took to the streets of Dhaka again on Sunday for the second day of their three-day strike protesting the value added tax (VAT) imposed on tuition fees.

Roads at Dhaka's Dhanmondi, Mohkhali, Banani, Rampura, Uttara and Abdullahpur have been blocked, causing major traffic, bdnews24 reported.

Students have been protesting since the 2015-16 fiscal's budget imposed a 7.5 percent VAT on tuition fees of universities, medical and engineering colleges in private sector.

Police said their request to move the protesters out from the street has not worked.

"We had requested students not to block the street and cause public suffering, but they did not listen," said sub-inspector Mehedi Maqsud, who is deployed in the area.

Police have detained some of the protesters in Uttara area but it has not been confirmed by the law enforcers.