Several students of Jatiya Kabi Kazi Nazrul Islam University have been accused of snatching a journalist’s mobile phone and roughing him up because he filmed wrongdoers while doing his job. According to the allegation, the journalist was pinned against a wall and shoved, pulled by his shirt collar and threatened with death. The video on his phone was also allegedly deleted.
The incident happened behind the university’s arts building on Wednesday night, 14 October. The victim, Abu Taher, is the campus correspondent of a media outlet and an executive member of the university press club.
According to witnesses and the victim, several rounds of clashes broke out between students after an argument on the university playing field. In the last stage, some students of the English language and literature department were being beaten with local weapons in the bushes behind the arts building. Abu Taher was filming. He alleges that when some students of the management department noticed, they set upon him.
Some of them allegedly pulled him by his shirt collar, while others threatened him: “If the video gets posted, we’ll finish you” and “Once the video is posted you’re done for, we’ll get you.”
Those first identified as accused are Abdul Kadir Jilani, Raihan Ahmed, Hossain Chowdhury, Didarul and Masud Rana Mobin of the management department, and Raihan Talukder of the finance and banking department. Two others have not been identified.
“Some management students were beating three English department students with local weapons in the bushes behind the arts building,” Abu Taher said. “I was filming from a distance. One management student saw me and called the others. Several of them came and tried to snatch my phone. They forced me, pinned me to the wall and shoved me, and some pulled me by the collar.” They threatened to finish him off if he posted the video, he said. “I begged them several times to let me go and told them I would delete the video, but they still did not let me go.” At one point the university proctor came and freed him from them.
Abu Taher said the accused students later came back and snatched his phone. After deleting the video, they checked his gallery and other things before giving the phone back.
The journalist said he will file a written complaint with the university administration. Attempts to contact several of the accused, Raihan Talukder among them, for comment were unsuccessful.
Asked about the matter, university proctor Dr Mahbubur Rahman said: “I am aware of it. Incidents like this are never acceptable. We will take action quickly.”
বাংলায় মূল প্রতিবেদন পড়ুন · Read the original Bengali report