Tension at Shahbagh police station over playing 7 March speech
Tension arose in front of Shahbagh police station in the capital after several individuals organised a programme to play the 7 March speech in protest against the detention of a leader of the Bangladesh Chhatra League, whose activities are now banned.
The incident began when the historic speech of Sheikh Mujibur Rahman was played on a sound box at Chankharpul.
According to the programme, the speech was played at around 9:30 pm on Saturday on a sound box placed inside a rickshaw in front of the police station.
Former student of the University of Dhaka Sheikh Tasnim Afroz Emi led the programme. Several university students also took part.
In response, leaders of Dhaka University Central Students Union (DUCSU) and Jatiya Chhatra Shakti took a counter-position at the scene in protest, which created tension between the two groups.
At one stage, people assaulted a leader of the Chhatra League who was present at the programme.
The confrontation between the two sides kept the area in front of Shahbagh police station tense until around 11:00 pm.
Earlier in the afternoon, people played Sheikh Mujibur Rahman’s historic 7 March speech on a sound box at Chankharpul intersection in the capital.
Police detained two individuals, including Asif Ahmed, from the spot and took them to Shahbagh police station.
Police also seized the sound box used in the incident. Asif Ahmed serves as the employment affairs secretary of the Bangladesh Chhatra League (whose activities are now banned) unit at Shahidullah Hall, University of Dhaka.
When this correspondent visited the Shahbagh area at around 9:30 pm, the speech of Sheikh Mujibur Rahman was playing on a sound box placed inside a rickshaw in front of the gate of the Bangladesh National Museum, opposite the police station.
Emi and several students stood nearby. They said they would continue playing the speech until the detained student was released.
Upon receiving the news, another group of students led by Tahmid Al Muddassir, convener of Jatiya Chhatra Shakti, the student organisation of the National Citizen Party, took a counter-position in front of the police station.
Both sides chanted slogans against each other, which further heightened tensions. Shortly afterwards, DUCSU leaders AB Zubair and Musaddiq Ali Ibne Mohammad arrived at the scene.
The exchange of slogans continued for some time. At one stage, under their leadership, the rickshaw carrying the sound box and Emi were taken inside Shahbagh police station.
This led to further tension, and Abdullah Al Mamun, joint secretary of the Sergeant Zahurul Haq Hall unit of Bangladesh Chhatra League at the University of Dhaka, who had accompanied Emi, was assaulted inside the police station.
Regarding the incident, DUCSU leader AB Zubair said, “They are trying to rehabilitate the Awami League by using the 7 March speech and the name of the Liberation War as a shield. The boy who was detained is a known terrorist affiliated with the Awami League. He attacked people during the July movement.”
Prothom Alo attempted to contact Md Moniruzzaman, Officer-in-Charge (OC) of Shahbagh police station, several times by mobile phone for comment on the entire incident, but he did not answer the calls.
As of 1:00 am, when this report was written, Abdullah Al Mamun remained detained at the police station. Asif Ahmed had already been detained earlier.
Those who had come to play the speech in front of the police station later left the area, while the DUCSU leaders also returned to the campus.