A Jubo Dal leader has been accused of stopping a microbus carrying journalists on duty in Nabinagar, Brahmanbaria, and demanding money in the name of a toll lease. The incident happened at about 12:30pm on Friday (23 October) at Alizabad junction on the Nabinagar-Brahmanbaria road. The accused leader is Asaduzzaman Biplob.
According to local sources, several television journalists were travelling by microbus to Dharabhanga village in the upazila to gather news at midday. When they reached Alizabad junction, the toll lessee’s men stopped the vehicle and demanded toll money. The journalists said the vehicle was covered as an emergency service and exempt from tolls, but the men refused to accept this. At one point they called in Jubo Dal leader Asaduzzaman Biplob.
On arrival, Biplob behaved badly towards the journalists and tried to extort money from them by force. At one point he confronted the journalists aggressively. He is also accused of intimidating them in various ways, introducing himself as the nephew of Abdul Mannan, MP for Brahmanbaria-5 (Nabinagar).
The municipal toll lessee, Jabedul Islam, said Biplob had been reprimanded for his behaviour towards the journalists. The UNO and the MP had already spoken of cancelling the lease, he said.
Rakibul Islam, Nabinagar upazila nirbahi officer (UNO) and administrator of the municipality, said there was no scope for taking toll money from journalists’ vehicles. “I sincerely regret the incident caused by the lessee’s men,” he said. “Steps are also being taken to cancel the municipal lease.”
MP Abdul Mannan strongly condemned the incident and expressed regret. “I have no nephew,” he said. “Those who did this under a false identity will not be spared. I have instructed the municipal authorities to cancel this lease immediately.”
বাংলায় মূল প্রতিবেদন পড়ুন · Read the original Bengali report