July fighter claims he was beaten, thrown out of Sylhet event over argument

Jubo Dal, Swechchhasebak Dal, and Chhatra Dal take to streets protesting incident

A July fighter has allegedly been assaulted and driven out of a commemorative event in Sylhet honouring families of mass uprising martyrs and July fighters.

A video of the incident has spread across social media platforms.

Leaders and activists from the Jatiyatabadi Jubo Dal, Swechchhasebak Dal, and Chhatra Dal immediately marched in protest following the incident.

The event took place on Tuesday afternoon at the Sylhet District Shilpakala Academy auditorium, said Azizul Hossain Aziz, former member secretary of the Sylhet city unit of Swechchhasebak Dal.

The injured, Selim Ahmed, is a member of the Convening Committee of the city unit of the organisation.

Selim claimed he was attacked and removed from the venue after a verbal dispute with the brother of a martyr.

“During the event, the brother of a martyr was describing problems he faced with police and the Army. I asked why this was happening only to him and not to others.

“At that point, he and several others began arguing with me. Then they assaulted me and forced me out of the programme,” he added.

Aziz of the Swechchhasebak Dal said, “The person who assaulted him was once with the Awami League, later joined the Jamaat-e-Islami, and is now with the NCP. We strongly condemn and protest this incident.”

Abul Hasan Md Azraf (Jabur Ahmed), NCP Sylhet district joint coordinator, said he intervened during the commotion and removed Selim from the hall to prevent further violence.

“I didn’t even know who he was -- had I not stepped in, others might have beaten him. I was only trying to mediate,” he said.

Nazim Uddin Shahan, chief coordinator of NCP in Sylhet, said: “I’ve heard there was some chaos among the injured inside Shilpakala Academy.”