Police detain journalist after Facebook post on Moosa bin Shamser

Police have detained a journalist after his Facebook post on controversial business tycoon Moosa bin Shamser, who allegedly collaborated with the Pakistan Army during the Liberation War.

Probir Sikdar wrote on Shamser's alleged role in the Liberation War in an article headlined 'Shei Razakar' when he was the Faridpur correspondent of Daily Janakantha in 2001.

He subsequently lost his leg in an attack allegedly by Shamser’s men. Probir’s plea to include Shamser in a case over the attack was rejected.

An investigation by the Anti-Corruption Commission against Shamser is under way.

The businessman’s daughter is married to the son of Awami League Presidium Member and Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina’s cousin Sheikh Fazlul Karim Selim, MP.

In a recent post on the social networking site, Probir also wrote against Hasina’s daughter’s father-in-law and LGRD and Cooperatives Minister Khandker Mosharraf Hossain.

There, he also wrote about the ‘threat to his life’.

“Sikdar was taken to the office of the Dhaka City Detective Branch on the basis of his Facebook post,” DB Deputy Commissioner (West) Sajjadur Rahman said.

He told bdnews24.com: “He has not been arrested. Police want to know why his life is in danger.”

Probir is the publisher editor of ‘Uttaradhikar Ekattur News’ and ‘Dainik Bangla Ekattur’. He worked with Bangla-language dailies Samakal and Kaler Kantho.

Probir Sikdar

Recently, he protested against a piece of writing on online news portal banglanews24.com that compared Shamser to the Father of the Nation Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman.

Then, he started posting on Shamser.

Hours before his detention on Sunday, he shared his article titled, “Know who this ‘Prince Dr Moosa bin Shamser’ really is”.

He also wrote: “The number of war crimes tribunal is rising. No-one will be spared!”

His son Suprio Sikdar told bdnews24.com Detective Branch officials took his father away from his Indira Road office at 6:30pm.

“He was taken to a blue police van first. Later in Khamarbarhi area, he was transferred to a brown private car that took him to the DB office,” he said.

Probir’s younger brother, wife and two sons later met him at the DB office on getting a phone call.

His brother Piyush Sikdar said their family had lost 14 members, including their father, in the 1971 war against Pakistan.

Quoting a DB assistant deputy commissioner (ADC), Suprio said his father would have to spend the night there.

“Asked why, he said ‘his hands were tied’.”

Probir in a post on Aug 10 said that his life was in danger.

In the post titled, ‘Those who will be responsible for putting my life in danger or my death’, he said he had informed police about the matter but to no avail.

He said he then went on to express concerns about “my life to the people’s court through Facebook”.

“I may not get another opportunity or time to bring another allegation.

“Today I am expressing concern about my life before the people’s court again through Facebook. I am clearly saying that the people named below will be responsible for my life being at risk or my death,”

Probir wrote.

“1. LGRD Minister Engineer Khandker Mosharraf Hossain, MP

  2. Razakar Nula Moosa alias Dr Moosa bin Shamser

  3. Death-row war criminal Bachchu Razakar alias Mawlana Abul Kalam Azad

And their followers-associates”.

His brother Piyush said a DB ADC told them that they would question Probir ‘on orders from the higher authorities’.

Indicating to the post on the threat to Probir’s life, Piyush said the ADC told them that he had to spend the night at the DB office for his own safety.

The detectives would start questioning him after 10am on Monday, the family was told.

“The officer asked us not to worry. He said they would not misbehave with him,” Piyush said.

He added, “Dada cannot even go to toilet without crutches. How he will spend the whole night on a wooden chair?”

Police at midnight took Probir to a microbus and left the DB office.

Suprio said they came to know that his father was being taken to Faridpur.

They also heard that a case under the ICT Act was filed against him there.

A sub-editor of Probir’s newspaper, Reazul Islam, told bdnews24.com he heard that Faridpur’s Assistant Public Prosecutor Swapan Kumar Pal filed the case.