Arrested Buet students not involved in politics; were framed: Parents
Families demanded their immediate release and the dropping of the charges against them
Bangladesh University of Engineering and Technology (Buet) students who were arrested in Haor of Sunamganj were not involved in politics and they were framed as part of a conspiracy, parents of the students claim.
Expressing concern about the safety of their children, guardians of the students at a press conference in front of Buet Shahid Minar on Tuesday, demanded their immediate release from jail and the dropping of the charges against them.
Former Dhaka University student Ali Ahsan Zonaed, elder brother of arrested Buet student Ali Ammar, read out a written statement on behalf of the guardians.
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In the statement, Zonaed said a total of 34 people, including 24 BUET students who had gone on a tour to Tanguar Haor in Sunamganj, were arrested and charged. The students were illegally arrested and charged under the Anti-Terrorism Act, which has put their educational careers at risk.
"We are concerned about this incident," the statement reads.
Narrating the incident, Zonaed said during the term-break vacation, some friends went for a visit to Sunamganj on Saturday where they met some of their fellows and went to Haor together. They could not be contacted since Sunday evening.
"We are concerned about who is hatching such a conspiracy with our children and for what purpose which is pushing their academic life and career under threat."
Zonaed said they informed the matter to the student welfare directors of BUET and urged the university authorities to give full cooperation in this regard.
In the statement, parents strongly alleged that someone is hatching conspiracies against their children who were innocently roaming in the Haor. "The police, in their attempt to file a case, could not locate certain documents on the students' mobile phones. Instead, these documents were retrieved from the internet and printed," the statement reads.
Zonaed further said the students have an impeccable record and we confidently stated that they have never been engaged in any anti-government activities. Throughout their lives, they have shown a dedicated focus on their studies, having no involvement in political affairs or any similar undertakings.
On Sunday Police arrested 34 students, including 24 students of the Bangladesh University of Engineering and Technology (BUET), on the charge of conducting anti-government activities through "jihad" near Tanguar Haor in Sunamganj.
Sunamganj Superintendent of Police Mohammad Ashan Shah said the arrestees were allegedly involved in an anti-government conspiracy with Chhatra Shibir, the student wing of Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami.
