Activists of the JCD, the student chapter of the ruling BNP, virtually sealed off the DU campus to the BCL activists who enforced the second day of their indefinite strike yesterday in protest at Thursday's overnight attacks on them.

The JCD activists fanned out across the campus early in the morning and mounted hunts for their rivals until noon. "Our senior leaders instructed us to resist the BCL move," said a JCD worker who was deployed with his fellow workers at Shahbagh intersection.

A group of JCD activists attacked a gathering of BCL men near the Bangla Academy at about 11:00am before they could enter the campus.

Morshed, a student of the Department of Accounting and Information Systems, who was long into BCL politics, was beaten up by JCD activists in front of Central Library at noon. Police rescued Morshed and sent him to hospital.

Another group of JCD men chased a former leader of the organisation, taking him for a BCL leader. "Mostafizur Rahman, who was general secretary of the Shahidullah Hall unit of the JCD eight years ago, resembles a BCL central leader. We mistakenly chased him," said a JCD activist of Salimullah Hall.

Mostafizur escaped mob beating as senior JCD leaders came out of Madhu's canteen to his rescue.

The JCD yesterday demonstrated on the DU campus in protest at the BCL strike and termed it illogical.

Police clubbed and teargassed a BCL procession at Chandpur Government College, injuring Saidur Rahman Apu, district unit BCL general secretary, and Ataur Rahman Patwari, college unit leader, said a BCL press release.

The strike hampered academic activities of Rajshahi University and Chittagong University and the BCL staged processions and rallies on the campuses.

Our Jahangirnagar University correspondent adds: The university's scheduled examinations were held without interruption.

Following a dialogue proposal by the DU authorities to resolve the deadlock, a BCL working committee meeting decided not to hold any talk until their activists are rehabilitated to dormitories.

About BCL's latest demand, DU Vice-chancellor Professor SMA Faiz said, "We proposed an immediate dialogue with JCD and BCL leaders to discuss all irritants. We strongly feel the stand-off should be resolved for the interests of students and to prevent any more session jam in the university."

About the ousted BCL men, Prof Faiz said, "I have instructed all provosts to allow all resident students back to the dormitories."

JCD activists in the early hours of Thursday forced over 100 BCL workers out of their dormitories and drove them out of the campus in the morning.

To protest the overnight attacks, the BCL has gone ahead with an indefinite strike at DU since Saturday and enforced a daylong strike at all educational institutions yesterday.

The BCL activists came under attack by their rivals again on Saturday, the first day of the strike, when they gathered to enter the campus.

Unidentified arsonists set fire to the main gate of the campus residence of a DU teacher, Professor Sahiduddin Ahmed, Saturday night. Police and fire brigade rushed to the spot and extinguished the flame.