Accused vow revenge after bail in journo assault case
Two accused of a journalist assault and abduction case vowed revenge in Chattogram on Thursday after securing bail from the High Court.
"By filing the false case, the journalist has humiliated the people of my area. Be careful of what you are doing. We will give you a befitting reply," said Siraj Uddin Chowdhury, one of the accused and also the local union parishad chairman, after a showdown in Rangunia's Islampur.
Mohiuddin Talukder Mohan, the main accused in the case and a member of the union parishad, was beside Siraj Uddin when he was welcomed by his supporters with flower garlands on Islampur union parishad premises on Thursday.
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The gathering and the speech were broadcast live from a Facebook page.
On 25 December last year, local UP member Mohiuddin Talukder Mohan and other assailants abducted The Business Standard journalist Abu Azad at gunpoint for taking pictures of an illegal brick kiln in Rangunia, according to a police case.
Abu Azad was taken to Mohan's office, tied up and tortured. The journalist's mobile phone was broken, his wallet and ID card were taken away and demanded Tk50,000 as ransom by UP Chairman Siraj Uddin Chowdhury and his men, says the case.
Subsequently, Abu Azad filed a formal police complaint with Rangunia Model Police Station alleging kidnapping, extortion and physical assault.
The duo got anticipatory bail for four weeks from the High Court on Tuesday.
Officer-in-Charge (OC) of Rangunia Model Police Station Mohammad Mahbub Milki said, "I don't know about the showdown. We will look into it. They had been on the run since the case."
The Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ), an organisation working on freedom of the press worldwide, has demanded that the Bangladesh government quickly investigate the kidnapping and attack of journalist Abu Azad and bring the culprits to account.
Earlier, the National Human Rights Commission in a statement directed the deputy commissioner of Chattogram to send a report to the commission by 1 February after investigating the matter and taking appropriate measures.
