Pro-Hasina slogans chanted at Gopalganj concert, organiser arrested

Police have arrested Hafizur Rahman, also known as Piyal, owner of FNF Convention Hall and Party Center in Gopalganj, for organising a concert at Gopalganj Municipal Park without police permission and for slogans in support of former prime minister Sheikh Hasina during the event.

Gopalganj Sadar police arrested Hafizur Rahman on Tuesday morning. He was later sent to jail through a court order. His father, Khalid Hossain, is the treasurer of the Gopalganj upazila Awami League (activities banned) and a former chairman of Barni Union Parishad.

According to police, Hafizur Rahman has been arrested in an earlier case filed under the Anti-Terrorism Act.

Police and local sources said a concert was organised at Gopalganj Municipal Park on Monday to mark the grand opening of FNF Convention Hall and Party Center. Singer Mainul Ahsan Noble performed at the event.

The concert began in the evening. At one point, people in the audience started chanting slogans in support of Sheikh Hasina. The organisers tried to stop them. An announcement was also made from the stage that the event was not a political programme, but the slogans continued. The programme was later stopped at around 9:15pm.

Gopalganj Superintendent of Police Md Habibullah said the concert had been organised without police permission, resulting in disorder at the venue. There were also allegations that activists and supporters of a banned organisation had gathered there. For these reasons, Hafizur Rahman was arrested under the Anti-Terrorism Act. He has been sent to jail through a court order, he said.

Asked about the complainant and the details of the case statement, the police superintendent said, "We don’t describe it as a case. We submitted him to the court in the way we normally do."

However, sources at Gopalganj Sadar police station said Hafizur Rahman had been arrested in an earlier case filed under the Anti-Terrorism Act.