DU student harassed over attire: man released on bail greeted with flowers

A group of people, who identified themselves as ‘Towhidi Janata’, welcome him after being released on bail

Mostafa Asif Arnob, an assistant binder at Dhaka University's central library, has secured bail in a case filed over the harassment of a female student on her way to campus.

Dhaka Metropolitan Magistrate Mehra Mahbub granted him bail on a Tk 1,000 bond on Thursday.

He was released from the Dhaka court's prison at 3pm. A group of people identifying themselves as “Towhidi Janata” (religious zealots) greeted him with flowers at that time.

Earlier, investigation officer SI Toufiq Hasan of Shabagh police produced him in court and pleaded to keep him imprisoned.

Arnob's lawyer Azmat Hossain later filed the bail plea in defence of the accused.

At the hearing, he argued that the accused was not involved in the incident and was implicated in the case intentionally.

SI Abul Kalam Azad of the General Registration Branch (Women and Children) at Shahbagh Police Station said the plaintiff appealed for withdrawal of the case.

According to the complaint, the student was on her way to the campus with her friend from outside the National Museum under Shahbagh police around 1:30pm on Wednesday. When they reached outside the Raju Sculpture, Arnob suddenly got in her way to say her dress was “inappropriate” and went on to make “foul comments”, sexually harassing her.

When the student attempted to call the proctor, Arnob ran away.

She later wrote on Facebook posting a photo of the perpetrator which circulated widely among the university community, prompting demands for action.

In the post, the student wrote: “I was wearing a salwar kameez properly with a scarf. He said my scarf had slipped. I told him it wasn’t his concern and that he had no right to stare. When I tried to call the proctor, he ran away.”

Meanwhile, a group of people gathered at the Shahbagh Police Station after midnight on Wednesday demanding the release of Arnob, who was arrested on charges of harassing a female student, calling themselves "Tawhidi Janata”.

They announced that they would stay there until the accused was released and remained there until 3:30pm.

Earlier, Shahbagh Police Station chief Md Khalid Mansur said the student lodged a complaint with the university’s proctor office before filing a case under the Women and Children Repression Prevention Act.

“The man harassed a female student. Following the complaint, he was arrested on Wednesday,” he said.