Cops compelled to catch bus staffers for sexually harassing student

Angered by allegations of sexual harassment of a female student inside a running bus, her university fellows stopped as many as 35 buses in the city’s Uttara area demanding arrest of the transport workers responsible.

Three workers of Turag Paribahan, a private bus service, were arrested from Sayedabad area, according to the police. They were taken to a three-day remand each on Tuesday.

The female student of Uttara University managed to get down from a Turag Paribahan bus when its workers tried to what she complained as harass her sexually, on Saturday afternoon.

Once she informed her friends going to the campus, the students took up a different form of protest. The protesters stopped the buses of Turag Paribahan and compelled the drivers to park them in front of Kuwait Bangladesh Friendship Government Hospital.

In their peaceful protest, the students helped the passengers of these seized buses change over to other buses.

 Eventually, 35 of such buses were seen lined up on the spot on Monday.

The husband of the victim filed a case with Gulshan police station in this connection on Sunday.

Amid the protest, the police had arrested bus driver Roman, conductor Manir, and helper Nayan in connection with this case, Gulshan police station officer-in-charge Abu Bakkar told Prothom Alo.

A Dhaka court on Tuesday placed three transport workers, arrested in connection with this case, on a three-day remand each.

The protesting students earlier on Monday held a press conference and gave the police a Tuesday afternoon deadline for arresting the driver and his men.

Parvez Hossain, on behalf of the protesters, told the media that they would continue their protest till the law enforcers arrest the accused.

The victim, in her statement, said she embarked on the bus on Badda Link Road around 12:30pm on Saturday. She sat in the seats reserved for women. As the bus reached Natun Bazar, most of the passengers left.

She noticed a number of passengers were waiting at a few stoppages, but the bus did not stop for them.

At one point, the driver’s assistant came to her and insisted her going to the back seat.

She also noticed that another man was standing there. The passengers at the back were talking to the drivers and his assistants, presumably known to them.

She then made a trick by saying she wanted to change her seat and tried to reach the doorway to get down. But the bus conductor grabbed her hand and the assistant said, “Aren't you going to Uttara?”

The passengers sitting in the back seats started shouting at her, asking the driver to drive towards Bishwa Road.

The student somehow managed to push away the assistant and conductor, and jumped out of the bus near Jamuna Future Park at around 1:15pm when it slowed down due to the traffic congestion. 

Some of them were still shouting, “Catch the girl! Catch the girl!”