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The accused instigated the government to suppress the students in the quota reform movement, the remand application says
Published : 22 Aug 2024, 04:59 PM
Ekattor Television’s former head of news Shakil Ahmed and its former chief correspondent Farzana Rupa have been remanded for four days in a case filed at Uttara East Police Station over the shooting death of a garment worker in Tongi during the Anti-discrimination Student Movement's protests.
Dhaka Metropolitan Magistrate Ahmed Humayun Kabir granted the remand order after hearing an application filed by police on Thursday.
Shakil, 51, and his wife Rupa, 47, were detained at Dhaka’s Shahjalal International Airport on Wednesday while attempting to board a Turkish Airlines flight to Paris via Istanbul.
Uttara East Police Station Sub-Inspector Md Mohaiminur Rahman sought a 10-day remand for questioning them after producing the journalist couple before the court on Thursday.
Court Police's Prosecution Department Inspector Md Asaduzzaman read out the remand petition on behalf of the state.
Anwar Hossain Aynal, the brother of the 28-year deceased Md Fazlul Karim, a sample operator at Best Shirts Ltd in Tongi, filed the case over the shooting death in the movement, the petition read.
Fazlul had joined the protest as the factory was closed at that time. He took up position on the street near Jasim Uddin area in Dhaka’s Uttara on Aug 5.
Describing the incident that occurred on that day, the petition said, “Under the instruction of the accused named in the case, Awami League-led criminals and unidentified suspects indiscriminately opened fire with shotguns, pistols, and revolvers on the protesters in a combined attack around 4:30pm.
“Many students and people, including the plaintiff's brother, received bullet injuries at the scene. The plaintiff's brother fell to the ground after being shot in the chest. The plaintiff's other younger sibling who was also attending the protest, Md Zilani, and other students took Fazlul to Kuwait Bangladesh Friendship Government Hospital.”
Fazlul died in the hospital’s intensive care unit late at night. He was buried without post-mortem examinations afterwards.
About the journalist couple’s involvement in the case, the remand application said, “We came to know based on a tip-off that the accused had instigated the government to suppress the students in the quota reform movement. The misery behind the incident will be revealed if police interrogate the accused thoroughly.”
Abdul Kader and Abdul Hannan Masud, coordinators of the Anti-discrimination Student Movement, sent a letter to the acting president and acting general secretary of the National Press Club on Aug 10.
The letter included a list of 50 journalists and alleged they supported the police and the ruling party and accused them of committing 'crimes against humanity' against students.
The names of Shakil and Rupa appeared on the list. The student movement leaders have called for a ‘ban’ on these journalists.
However, Ekattor Media Limited dismissed the two from their senior positions at the media outlet on Aug 8 even before the letter was published. The couple have a daughter.
