Sajjad Hossain Sajal was a student of the Textile Engineering Department at City University. He left home around 9 am. On August 5 to participate in the "March to Dhaka" program called by the anti-discrimination student movement. He had been regularly in touch with his mother by phone, with their last conversation occurring around 2.45 pm. After that, there was no further contact with Sajal. The next day (August 6), when the army announced over loudspeakers to identify four bodies in Ashulia, his mother, Shahina Begum, rushed there. She identified the charred body of her missing son, who had been severely injured by bullets and burned.

Although the anti-discrimination student movement began at public universities, it was primarily the students of private universities who took charge at the turning point. On July 15, after a series of attacks on students across various campuses, students from private universities collectively announced their decision to join the movement. They took to the streets the following day. The movement lost momentum when public university students were forced to leave their dormitories on July 17. At that moment, private university students took a strong stance and held their ground on the streets, adding a new dimension to the movement. On July 18, when the police opened fire indiscriminately, three students were killed, which turned the tide of the movement. The protests spread like wildfire across all campuses.

Bonik Barta confirms that 17 students from private universities were killed by gunfire during the student movement. According to information gathered from the respective universities and families, students from a total of 13 private universities—12 in Dhaka and one in Rajshahi—lost their lives between July 18 and August 10. Among them, nine were shot on August 5, the day of the government's downfall. The remaining students were shot between July 18 and July 21. Some of them died at various times while undergoing treatment.

On July 18, three students from private universities were killed by gunfire during the movement: Parvez Shakil, Md. Irfan Bhuiyan, and Asif Hasan. Shakil was a BBA student at Manarat International University, Irfan studied Computer Science and Engineering at United International University, and Asif was in the English Department at Northern University Bangladesh. On that day, Md. Selim Talukdar, a student of the Apparel Merchandising and Management Department at BGMEA University of Fashion and Technology, was also shot in Rampura. He died on August 1 while undergoing treatment. His ancestral home is in Nalkhati Upazila, Jhalokati.

Asif Iqbal, a former student of Independent University, Bangladesh, was killed on July 19. On the same day, Imtiaz Ahmed Jabir, a BBA student at Southeast University, was shot. He died on July 26 while undergoing treatment. Rabbie Mia, a student of the Electrical and Electronic Engineering Department at Southeast University, was standing on the balcony of his home in Jatrabari when he was hit by gunfire from outside on July 20 and lost his life.

On August 5, private university students suffered the highest number of casualties. On that day, a total of nine students lost their lives. Among them were Rakib Hossain and Robiul Islam, students from the Textile Engineering Department at Southeast University, who were killed in the clashes. Rakib was the son of Alamgir Hossain Howlader from Rahmatpur Union in Babuganj Upazila, Barishal. Robiul's father is Molla Ahmed Said, and his ancestral home is in Dumuria, Khulna.

Md. Ahnaf Abir Ashrafulah, a student of the Electrical and Electronic Engineering Department at Manarat International University, was killed by gunfire in Baipail, Ashulia. His ancestral home is in Baropakhia village, Delduwar Upazila, Tangail. Sajjad Hossain Sajal, a first-year student of the Textile Engineering Department at City University, was killed in Savar. Russell Mahmood, a student of the Bengali Department at Sonargaon University, died from gunshot wounds in Jatrabari. After the fall of the government, six charred bodies were recovered from the residence of the Joint General Secretary of the Lalmonirhat District Awami League. One of them was Shahriar Al-Afroz Shrabon, a Computer Science and Engineering Department student at Daffodil International University. Shaqib Anzum, a student of the Computer Science and Engineering Department at Barendra University, was killed by gunfire in Rajshahi.

On the day of the fall of the Awami League government, two students from Bangladesh University of Business and Technology were shot. Sujon Mahmud, a student of the Electrical and Electronic Engineering Department, was killed by gunfire in Mirpur 2. On the same day, Tahmid Abdullah Ayon, a student of the Computer Science and Engineering Department, was also shot. He died on August 10 while undergoing treatment.

On July 18, Md. Irfan Bhuiyan, a student of the Computer Science and Engineering Department at United International University (UIU), was killed. His ancestral home is in Kandail, Narsingdi Sadar. He was the only child of his parents. After losing their only son, Irfan's father, Aminul Islam Bhuiyan, said, "I heard that he was supposed to go to Badda to participate in the movement on the day he was killed. However, he was unwell due to a stomach issue from the morning, so he did not go to Badda. He went to Shaniakhar at around 1 pm. I received news of my son's death at around 5 pm. The bullet entered through the right side of his ribs and exited from the other side. His fingers seemed to be broken, and there was also a head injury. It seems that after beating my son mercilessly, they threw him on the ground and shot him from behind."

Asif Hasan, a student of the English Department at Northern University Bangladesh, was also shot and killed on July 18. His ancestral home is in Debhata, Satkhira. Asif was one of two twin brothers and the eldest of three sisters, with a farmer father.

The deceased's brother, Rakib Hasan, a student at Satkhira Government College, told Bonik Barta, "Asif was shot between 12.30 and 1 pm. on July 18 near the BNS Center in Uttara. His chest was riddled with pellets. Over a hundred pellets hit his chest, and one pellet struck under his armpit." Rakib Hasan also confirmed the truth of this account by sending several photos of his deceased brother via WhatsApp.

Parvez Shakil, a BBA student at Manarat International University, who was shot and killed on July 18, was from Chapilataly in Lakshmipur Sadar. Shakil was the only child of his parents. His three elder sisters are all married. His father runs a small business selling clay pots and utensils in Tongi.

Shakil's father, Belayet Hossain, said, "Shakil left home at 7.30 am. on July 18. He was shot in front of the BNS Center in Uttara around 4.30 pm. in the afternoon. Pellets hit him in his face and bullets in his chest, and he fell into the embrace of death."

Asif Iqbal, a student at Independent University, Bangladesh, was killed on July 19. The police shot him during a confrontation with students in Mirpur 10. Asif's home is at 28 Number Road, at the end of the alley near Pallabi Model School. His father is Abdur Razzaq, and his ancestral home is in Nowhata, Shreepur Upazila, Magura.

Mohammad Shakil Hossain Zulfiqar, a student of the Fine Arts Department at the University of Development Alternative (UODA), was shot on August 4. He died on August 7 while undergoing treatment at the National Institute of Neurosciences and Hospital. Shakil's ancestral home is in Noyachar, Bhola Sadar.

On the day of the incident, around 1 pm., at the Mirpur 10 Roundabout, Shakil was shot in the head. His mother, Bibi Ayesha, said, "Shakil came home around 12 pm that day. After having a meal, he left again around 12.30 pm. In the afternoon, some students told me Shakil was unwell and had been taken to Kurmitola Hospital. They said the doctors wouldn't treat him unless I went. I then set out in an auto-rickshaw but faced many obstacles. Before reaching there, I heard he was being taken to Neurosciences. When I arrived, I found my son unresponsive. His head was bandaged. He was in this condition at the hospital. On August 7, the doctors declared him dead."

It is known that after Shakil's father, Siddiq Mirdha, passed away in 2014, Shakil's mother, Bibi Ayesha, moved to Dhaka in search of livelihood with Shakil, his two elder sisters, and a younger brother. She supports the family by working in people's homes. Shakil himself supported his expenses by giving private tuition. His younger brother works in a kurta factory.

Md. Ahnaf Abir Ashrafulah, a student of the Electrical and Electronic Engineering Department at City University, was killed by gunfire on August 5. His sister, lawyer Syeda Akhtar, told Bonik Barta they are three sisters and one brother. He was shot in Baipayl, Ashulia. He was hit by a bullet in his hand around noon, which he also posted on Facebook. They last spoke at around 4.15 pm. on that day before receiving the news of his death at 6 pm. When she saw her brother, his nose was injured. She did not dare to check the area on the right side of the chest where the bullet had hit.

Sujon Mahmud Mithu, a student of the Electrical and Electronic Engineering Department at Bangladesh University of Business and Technology (BUBT), was shot and killed on August 5 in Mirpur 2. On the same day, Md. Tahmid Abdullah, a student of the Computer Science and Engineering Department, was seriously injured and died on August 10 while undergoing treatment. Two buildings at BUBT have now been named to honor these deceased students.