Hriday Chandra Tarua

Hriday Chandra Tarua was a brave and fearless young man. He did not hesitate to sacrifice his own life for the country. His sacrifice and dedication can never be forgotten. Hriday's death reminds us all how important it is to fight for the country. We hope that the soul of Hriday Chandra Tarua will find peace and that his sacrifice will be worthwhile.
How He Became Eternally Memorable
Hriday Chandra Tarua, a student of the History Department of Chittagong University, was an active student organizer. In protest against the reinstatement of the discriminatory quota system in government jobs by the court, the student community of the whole of Bangladesh took to the streets demanding reform of the quota system. To join that protest program, Hriday, along with several of his friends, went to the Bahaddarhat area on July 18 at around 1:30 pm. The procession of students continued with slogans –
"Who are you, who am I,
Razakar Razakar
Who said it, who said it, Autocrat Autocrat."
"We wanted rights And became Razakars"
"The country bought with the blood of millions of Shaheeds
Does not belong to anyone's father."
"No compromise, struggle, struggle, struggle"
"No brokerage, the streets, the streets, the streets"
"I eat, I wear, They shoot at my chest";
"Take your quota, Return my brother"
"In my golden Bengal There is no place for discrimination"
"There is a great storm inside the chest, I have offered my chest, shoot."
These thunderous slogans, which made the hearts of the oppressor’s tremble, began to resonate on the streets of Bir Chattala.
When the procession tried to move forward, the police and Chhatra League, armed with weapons, obstructed the students. At this time, when the police fired tear gas shells, a chase and counter-chase incident occurred between the law enforcement agencies and the protesting students.
Since Hriday was not local to Chittagong, he did not know the area very well. The police and BGB were stationed at the Bahaddarhat intersection. Students were throwing stones from a part of the road on the left. The police were firing bullets from time to time.
An eyewitness friend of Hriday said, "While we were running in search of a safe place after being chased, there was a loud noise. Looking around, I saw Hriday lying there, beckoning with his hand. I could not even look at him then. It was the first time I saw someone shot. I called many people for help. Later, with the help of a few young boys, I took him to the hospital." While talking to his friend in the rickshaw, he said, "He kept saying, 'My legs are becoming numb. I can't move my legs.' I was holding his leg. He kept asking, 'How much longer?'"
Hriday Tarua's lung was pierced by the police bullet that struck his chest squarely. He was transported in a wounded state to many hospitals in Chittagong. The physicians told him that in order to remove the bullet, open heart surgery was required. But they were reluctant to perform the surgery as he was a protester. Open heart surgery also costs several lakhs of Taka. After the nationwide crackdown on July 18th, all mobile banking and ATMs were shut down. The hospitals informed that 60-70decimals of the money had to be paid before the surgery. Later, on the morning of the 20th, he was brought to Dhaka Medical.
It was not possible to manage an ICU at DMCH. Later, an ICU was managed at a private hospital, but even then, no medical personnel agreed to perform the surgery. Then Hriday was taken to PG Hospital, where the authorities refused to admit him after learning that he was a 'protesting student'. After this, contact was made with 'Square Hospital', where the same situation occurred. They informed that almost 10 lakh Taka had to be paid in advance. Otherwise, the surgery would not be performed. Then, after being taken to the Chest Disease Hospital, they also refused.
In this way, Hriday kept moving from hospital to hospital with a bullet in his chest for 5 days. Without receiving proper treatment, he finally breathed his last in the ICU of Dhaka Medical College on the morning of July 23. Countless hearts like his die without treatment during such movements.
Protesting Hriday Tarua
Hriday Chandra Tarua participated in the anti-discrimination student movement from the very beginning. A picture of him holding a placard on July 17, 2024, is still floating on Facebook. It reads, "Hold the pen while keeping the quota, express your bravery." On the same day, the SSC batch-18 wrote on Facebook to his friends, which is quoted verbatim: "I, on behalf of the SSC-2018 batch of Patuakhali Government Jubilee High School, announce that if anyone from our batch is directly or indirectly involved in the attack on ordinary students, we declare to boycott those individuals from the batch as suitable evidence. In the future, those individuals will not be invited to any activities of the 18th batch, and no one will maintain any contact with them. Jubileean" - such was his language of protest.
Statements/Feelings of Close Relatives and Friends about the Shaheed
1. The deceased's brother-in-law, Dipak Mistri, says, "He was a very good person. He studied with great difficulty. I had a very good relationship with him. On July 18, I suddenly received a call that Hriday had been shot. Later I went to Chittagong and brought him to Dhaka Medical for admission. He died on the 23rd. He was very sociable."
2. The deceased's father, Ratan Tarua (50), says, "Hriday Chandra Tarua was my only son. I educated him with great difficulty. He was a very good student, he got A+ in the SSC from Jubilee School. He also got A+ in the HSC from Patuakhali Government College. My son was very good. Polite, gentle. There is no other boy as good as him in the area. I admitted my son to the university with great difficulty. My father Hriday said that after finishing his studies, he would become a magistrate by passing the BCS exam."
3. Elder sister Mitu says, "My brother was very talented. When he got a chance at Chittagong University, my parents distributed sweets to everyone in the neighborhood. Hriday also knew how big a responsibility was on his shoulders. Whenever he called his father, he would say, 'Father, just a few more years. Then you won't have to work hard anymore.'"
The family without Hriday
Hriday's home is in Mirzaganj Upazila of Patuakhali. Although the house is in Mirzaganj, Hriday's family lives in a rented house in Charpara, Natun Bazar area of Patuakhali Sadar. Hriday's parents are almost insane after losing him. His elder sister Mitu depicts the story of the family's struggle for life. She says, "My mother used to send the money she saved from working in houses to Hriday. We all hoped that he would grow up one day. He will get a job, he will erase our sorrows and hardships."
Archana Rani has fainted several times after hearing the news of her son's death. She is wailing whenever she regains consciousness. She cannot be stopped by anything.
Mitu says, "My brother did not pick up any weapons. He did not hurt anyone. Maybe he participated in the quota movement. So why did he have to be shot and killed like this? We want justice for this."
Family economic condition
The brave Hriday Chandra Tarua's father, Ratan Tarua (50), is a carpenter by profession. He lives in a rented house in Patuakhali city and goes to different houses to work on making furniture. Mother Archana Rani (45), despite being a heart patient, works as a maid in other people's houses. His family was passing a very hard time. The son used to help the family financially by tutoring. The family is financially insolvent. Their only son was Hriday Chandra Tarua.
With the money from their own hard work, the couple wanted to make their only son, Hriday Chandra Tarua, a student of Chittagong University, a successful person. The son also wanted to eliminate all the sufferings of his parents one day. He would bring smiles to their faces. Whenever he called, he would tell them about their dreams; but a bullet ended everything.
Hriday Chandra Tarua's family does not have any own residence. After losing their only son, this family has now become a destitute family. They have no hopes or aspirations, the only daughter is married and her husband also works as a carpenter. There is no one to take care of the family. Both parents are grief-stricken after losing their son and the neighbors are also speechless.
A Glimpse of the Shaheed’s Personal Information
Name : Hriday Chandra Tarua
Date of Birth : 03-04-2003
Father : Ratan Tarua
Mother : Archana Rani
Permanent Address : Village: Charpara Natun Bazar, Union: Patuakhali Municipality, Thana: Sadar, District: Patuakhali
Occupation : Student (3rd year Bachelor's, Department of History)
Educational Institution : Chittagong University
Place of Incident : Under Bahaddarhat Bridge
Time of Injury : July 18, 2:30 PM (approximately), Bahaddarhat Mor, Chittagong
Time of Martyrdom : July 23, Dhaka Medical College, ICU
Type of Injury : Bullet wound to the chest
Assailant : Police
Place of Funeral: The funeral was held in his village
Proposals
1. The cost of his mother's heart treatment can be covered.
2. Capital can be given to his father for business.
3. Permanent housing is needed.