Published : 01 Oct 2026, 03:22 PM
Updated : 01 Oct 2026, 03:22 PM
The “Let’s Ride the Metro in Shorts!” programme was scheduled for the afternoon, but young people have started arriving at metro rail stations in shorts since the morning.
Just after 7am on Thursday, several young men wearing shorts arrived at the Farmgate Metro Rail Station.
They included private sector employees Sagar Majumder and Rakibul Islam, and businessman Mahfuzur Rahman.
After 9am, several others also arrived at the metro station separately in shorts.
They later boarded the metro rail individually from Farmgate.
The programme to travel on the metro wearing shorts and T-shirts was announced in protest against the alleged harassment of an athletic coach who was wearing shorts while travelling on the metro.
A Facebook user named Shawon Ahmed created an event titled “Let’s Ride the Metro in Shorts!”
According to the Facebook event, the programme was scheduled to take place at Farmgate Metro Rail Station from 5am to 8am on Thursday. Runners, athletes, cyclists, gym-goers and other members of the public were invited to participate wearing their regular sportswear.
The event description said, “On Sunday (Sept 27) morning, running coach Sazzad Hossain went to Farmgate Metro Rail Station after completing his training, wearing a T-shirt and shorts. He alleged that a police officer stopped him, questioned him because he considered his clothing ‘indecent’, and made him wait for around 40 minutes.”
The organisers described the programme as a peaceful civic protest. According to them, its purpose was not to create any disorder, but to protest harassment, demand clear rules regarding clothing, and call for respectful treatment of passengers.
The slogan chosen for the programme was: “The problem is not the shorts, the problem is harassment!”
Another Facebook page listed the programme time as 5pm at Farmgate Station.
However, senior officials said there is no specific dress code for travelling on the metro rail.
Following Sunday’s incident, Sazzad posted a video on his Facebook account. In the video, he could be seen speaking with a police officer at the metro rail station about his clothing. Sazzad asked whether there were any written rules specifying what clothing was considered decent or indecent. In response, the police officer said it was his responsibility to look into the matter.
Around 7am on Thursday, private sector employee Sagar told bdnews24.com: “Wearing shorts is more comfortable when running, which is why I wear them. Athlete Sazzad Hossain was harassed when he tried to board the metro wearing shorts. We do not want anyone else to face the kind of harassment he experienced. That is why I came to the metro today in shorts after going for a run. I have to go to the office, so I came in the morning.”
He added, “Shorts are not really the issue. If you look at them negatively, they are negative; if you look at them positively, they are positive.”
Businessman Mahfuzur said, “People should have the right to come to the metro wearing shorts. It is normal clothing. I do not usually take the metro, and I do not normally wear shorts either.
“But because I wanted to protest, I found a pair of shorts and came here wearing them.”
