The Youth Arise Movement has demanded the immediate release of students of the Federal Polytechnic, Bauchi, allegedly arrested by police during a protest on Tuesday.

The Guardian gathered that the protest erupted in the Gwallameji area of Bauchi, where the institution is located, following an armed robbery attack on a students’ hostel on Monday night. Several students reportedly sustained injuries and lost valuables during the raid.

The demonstration later turned violent, prompting the polytechnic management to shut the campus indefinitely. Police subsequently made arrests, with the youth group alleging that some students were among those detained.

In a statement issued on Wednesday in Gombe, the convener of the Youth Arise Movement, Comrade Babatunde Ademola, condemned the arrests as “an abuse of power that must be opposed by all who believe in justice and the rule of law.”

He demanded the unconditional release of the students, the dropping of all charges against them, and an urgent investigation into the robbery incidents.

“Students are not criminals. They are citizens demanding accountability, dignity, and a better future. If the institutions meant to protect us cannot ensure our safety, they must not turn around to punish us for defending ourselves through peaceful protest,” Ademola said.

The group also urged civil society organisations, human rights groups, and the public to join in demanding justice and the immediate release of all detained persons.