Young man detained over Dhaka footpath assault, inactive cop withdrawn

Police arrested Khalid Hasan, 35, who was seen assaulting a man on a footpath in Dhaka’s Dhanmondi, near Meena Bazar in the area at around 11:45am on Wednesday.

Assistant Sub-Inspector (ASI) Abdul Hai of Dhanmondi Police Station, who was present at the scene during the assault, has been withdrawn from his post over allegations of negligence of duty.

Muhammad Imdadul Islam Tayeb, officer-in-charge (OC) of Dhanmondi Police Station, told Prothom Alo at noon that Khalid had been arrested over allegations of assaulting Shahid Abdullah Al Masud, also known as Masud Rana (48) and forcing him to do sit-ups while holding his ears.

The incident took place around noon on Monday opposite Bangladesh Eye Hospital on Satmasjid Road.

Khalid was produced before the court of the Special Metropolitan Magistrate under the Dhaka Metropolitan Police’s Ramna zone on Wednesday. OC Imdadul Islam said Shahid Abdullah suffers from a mental illness.

On Monday afternoon, Shahid Abdullah was accused of sexually harassing a 23 year old woman. Following the allegation, Khalid was seen slapping, kicking and forcing him to do sit ups while holding his ears.

A video of the incident later spread on social media, triggering widespread discussion and criticism. The assault, however, became the central focus of the debate.

Police said Khalid, who was arrested in connection with the incident, works as a graphic designer at a private company.

The woman told Prothom Alo on Wednesday that Shahid Abdullah had touched her inappropriately. She alleged that police officers present at the scene were reluctant to detain him. She then called a relative over the phone, who arrived and then beat Shahid Abdullah.

She said that her relative is now facing harassment for coming to her defence, having been detained by police and forwarded to the magistrate court, while the police officers who stood by silently during the incident faced little accountability. She questioned what steps were being taken against those officers.

The woman said she went to Dhanmondi Police Station on Wednesday morning after learning of her relative’s detention. According to her, police told her that the incident would not have happened if the video had not gone viral on social media.

She said she would file a case against the person who uploaded the video that went viral and demanded her relative’s release.

Asked what action had been taken against the police officers present at the scene, OC Imdadul Islam told Prothom Alo that ASI Abdul Hai had been withdrawn from the police station.

Hai had been on duty at the scene, he said. The other two officers present belonged to the Public Order Management unit, which handles riot control and he had no information about any action against them.

A 2 minute and 12 second video circulated on social media shows a young man angrily hurling abuse at Shahid Abdullah while slapping and kicking him. Pedestrians crowded around the spot, with some watching and others recording the incident on their mobile phones.

Some conversations among the bystanders can be heard in the video. Some are heard saying, “He touched the woman,” “This happened in the canteen,” and “Doesn’t he have a mother or sister?”

At one point, a passer-by approaches the man being assaulted and points towards two police officers at the scene, telling the others to hand the man over to them.

The man being assaulted is then seen getting up from a seated position. A bystander and the young man assaulting him take his mobile phone and question him about various matters.

The agitated young man is heard saying, “What sorry? Does saying sorry make everything alright?" He then slaps the man again, shouting, "...You laid hands on a mother."

The video shows two police officers standing just a few feet away as the incident unfolds on the footpath. Like the bystanders gathered around them, the officers appear to be watching the incident.

Many people on Facebook have questioned the police’s role in the incident. The caption of one post reads: “Alas, Bangladesh! Alas, freedom! Alas, the rule of law upheld by law enforcement!

In broad daylight, a mob is attacking a man old enough to be their father right in front of the police, yet the officers are acting like spectators, simply standing by and watching.”