An executive member of Dhaka University’s (DU) Bijoy Ekattor Hall Union has allegedly threatened a journalist on Facebook, days after an attack on journalists at Shahbag Police Station.
The accused, Sulayman Hossain Robi, also joint convener of the hall unit of Jatiotabadi Chattra Dal (JCD), reportedly targeted Mohammad Iftekhar Hossain Sifat, a reporter of Dhaka Mail, in a post made on Sunday.
In the post, Robi accused Sifat of provoking a quarrel with hall students during a JCD programme, using abusive language against his associates and serving the interests of Islami Chhatra Shibir.
When Robi was asked whether he had any evidence of Sifat’s alleged links with Shibir, he said, “Around 500-600 activists participate in Shibir programs. The identity documents of their student representatives at the hall level are kept highly confidential, so they are not easy to identify. Previously, Sifat also behaved inappropriately with a Chhatra Dal activist in front of Bijoy Ekattor Hall when he was simply asked to show his ID card.”
However, in his post, he explicitly stated that he has all the evidence against Sifat.
Referring to the Shahbag incident, Robi wrote on Facebook post that Sifat had ‘picked a fight’ inside the police station and struck a senior JCD leader. He ended the post with an explicit physical threat, using obscene language.
Robi deleted the post before this report was compiled. Speaking to The Daily Observer, he acknowledged that using such language was ‘inappropriate’ for a hall union representative.
He denied involvement in the Shahbag attack, claiming he was standing at the station gate at the time. “I didn't touch any journalist," he said, adding that he intended to pursue legal action.
Multiple lawyers confirmed to this correspondent that the post could expose Robi to prosecution under the Cyber Security Act or the Security Protection Act.
The attack on 10 members of the Dhaka University Journalists' Association (DUJA) occurred on Thursday (23 April) around 8:00pm. DUJA described it as an organised mob assault, directly blaming JCD leaders and activists. The association has issued a three-point demand, including the swift arrest and punishment of those involved. It also reported that the day before the attack, journalists were threatened and harassed at two university halls by JCD members.
NRE/AM
