[1] They were sparked by the deaths of two high-school students in Dhaka struck by a bus operated by an unlicensed driver who was racing to collect passengers.

The incident impelled students to demand safer roads and stricter traffic laws, and the demonstrations rapidly spread throughout Bangladesh.

[32][33]Ilias Kanchan, a Bangladeshi film actor, road safety activist and founder of the Nirapad Sarak Chai campaign, expressed solidarity with the protests by initiating a human chain in Dhaka on 3 August.

In Dhaka, police used tear gas and rubber bullets to disperse the protesters, and approximately 40 students were injured and 10 people were arrested from the nearby area of the private university campuses.

[46] Bangladesh Police fired tear gas and rubber bullets and used batons to disperse the protesters leaving many people injured.

[47] One top leader of the ruling Bangladesh Awami League alleged that some criminals wearing school uniforms had joined the violence, but this was unconfirmed.

[51] On 4 August, a group of armed men riding motorcycles attacked an official car carrying Marcia Bernicat, the US ambassador to Bangladesh, although nobody was injured.

[57] Following a live interview about the protests with Al Jazeera, photographer Shahidul Alam was detained by a group of between 30 and 35 plainclothes police officers[58] on 5 August.

[7][61] The Supreme Court halted the seven-day remand on 7 August and after observing his physical condition ordered authorities to admit him to a hospital.

[65] More 5 people have been detained by the Bangladesh Police including Mahabubur Rahaman Arman, a human rights activist, and cybersecurity and crime analyst who was charged under Section 57 of the Information and Communication Technology Act and was remanded for six days.

[11][70] On 8 August, police raided the Bashundhara Residential Area in Dhaka, where a number of private university students reside, but no one was arrested during the operation.

[71] On 9 August, Dhaka University authority handed over one of their student to police with the assistance of pro-government youth league BCL for his Facebook posts.

[76] On 3 August, the government donated a savings certificate of 2 million BDT to each of the families of the students who died in the bus accident.

[77] On 4 August, the government blocked mobile internet access for 24 hours in response to supposed misinformation circulating online.

[78] Home Minister Asaduzzaman Khan announced that police would take "tough action" against the agitating students "if limit is crossed [sic?]".

[79] On 5 August, 3G and 4G cellular networks were again reportedly blocked by authorities in an attempt to control the mass spread of misinformation online, resulting in a temporary communication black-out.

[11] Photographer Shahidul Alam was detained for interrogation and remanded by police due to his social media activity on the protest; Amnesty International condemned the arrest.

[86] According to an official in the cyber crime division of the Dhaka metropolitan police, up to 1,200 social media accounts have been identified to allegedly spread rumours.

In addition to police officers, members of pro-government youth league BCL, also asked followers to send examples of anyone allegedly spreading rumours.

[96] Swedish Foreign Affairs Minister Margot Wallström voiced her concern regarding the violent scenes witnessed in Dhaka and called for the respect of the right to peacefully protest.

[9] New York-based Human Rights Watch criticised the Bangladesh government for "unlawfully attacking" student protesters and locking up people for "peaceful criticism".