Nusraat Faria’s arrest, vengeance politics, and a Raskolnikovian metamorphosis
Soon after the fall of the AL government, Faria found herself in hot water — turns out the making of a nation was the undoing of Faria.
Nusraat Faria's arrest isn't an embarrassment.
It's an absolute debacle, which again lays bare the many failures within the current political regime. Before this article gets an overzealous fact-check, let's aim to explain that.
Yesterday (18 May), the actor was arrested in an attempt to murder case filed at Bhatara Police Station and sent to prison today (19 May) by a Dhaka court.
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The case was filed against around 300 individuals, including 17 film and television artists, in connection with an incident that occurred at Vatara during the anti-discrimination student movement last year.
Apart from Faria, the list of artists includes Apu Biswas, Nipun Akter, Suborna Mustafa, Ashna Habib Bhabna, and Zayed Khan.
Vatara Police Station Officer-in-Charge Mazharul Islam said a man named Enamul Haque filed the case in March. Ousted prime minister Sheikh Hasina is also accused in this case.
The arrest has, once again, sent the interim government scrambling.
But before we get into that, here's a little primer.
Nusraat Faria began her acting career in 2015, by the time the second reign of the Awami League (AL) had already been solidified.
She worked in several Bangladeshi and Indian films, while also being active in modelling and hosting different shows, getting a few accolades for her acting career.
One of her landmark roles, and perhaps that has caused such a stink, was when she played a younger Sheikh Hasina in the movie titled "Mujib: The Making of a Nation".
Soon after the fall of the AL government, Faria found herself in hot water — turns out the making of a nation was the undoing of Faria.
Chasing or imaging fascist ghosts?
To claim Nusraat Faria had attempted to murder this Enamul is quite a leap.
Not to height shame, but at 5'3", she is barely the most formidable killer.
But a closer examination tells a lot more about what this case is about.
Enamul accused 300 people in the case he filed. Remember that, as we take a look at the case of Iresh Zaker.
Mostafizur Rahman Bappi, brother of Mahfuz Alam Srabon who died during the July uprising, filed a case with a Dhaka court naming actor Iresh Zaker alongside Sheikh Hasina and 406 others on 20 April -- nine months after his brother's death.
When asked about the involvement of Iresh Zaker, Bappi said, "How can I possibly know everyone, brother? The incident happened in Dhaka, and I live in Naogaon."
He further explained, "The police, taking responsibility, added the names of those whose involvement they found. The advocates also added some names. I, too, provided some information based on newspapers, focusing on those affiliated with the Awami League."
"It is not possible for a single person to file such a case alone. If it were just me, I would have named five to 10 people, maybe 20 or 50," he added.
What Bappi is saying is that he did not know who he was filing the case against.
He was told to do it. This is quite clear.
The case against Iresh Zaker unleashed a storm of criticism, with many pointing out how he had stood by the protesters in July last year.
This is when Cultural Affairs Adviser Mostofa Sarwar Farooki came into the equation.
A divided force promising unity?
When the case against Iresh Zaker was filed, Farooki expressed concern, terming it "deeply troubling" and "deeply disturbing".
"The state did not file the case; someone else did it. In the new Bangladesh, everyone has the right to file cases. Some are also abusing this freedom. I believe the police will conduct a proper investigation. They will uphold the truth, and will dismiss it [the allegation] if false," he said.
In the case of Nusraat Faria, Farooki again said almost the same, with many pointing out that his wife, Nusrat Imrose Tisha, also played the role of Fazilatunnesa Mujib Renu in the biopic "Mujib: The Making of a Nation" without much of the glare.
"Nusraat Faria's arrest remains an embarrassing incident for us. Our government's job is to bring the real culprits of July to justice. Our clear stance on blanket cases is that no one will be arrested if there is no involvement in the preliminary investigation. And that policy was being followed," Farooki said today on a Facebook post.
He, however, said the case against Faria had been ongoing for some time, but there had been no initiative to arrest her before the investigation was completed.
Then Farooki offered up the crux of the criticism, without addressing it properly.
"Perhaps these incidents are occurring out of nervousness following the anger expressed over the foreign travel of former president Abdul Hamid of the Awami League government," he said.
Indeed, Hamid's easy exit from the country had kicked off a storm of criticism, while prompting questions on how united the state mechanism really is.
Crime and punishment
With the ban in AL almost in place, it is believed that the interim government – and the powers that be – have decided to launch a campaign against those in support of the party, now or previously.
Discounting any contentious elections, and taking the example of the 2008 elections, the data shows that the AL secured 48.04% of the votes.
So then, if the crackdown really is against those who have ever had a kind word to say against AL is true, should all those voters be behind bars?
Are they all part of some state-sponsored killing revolution? The elections before that and those after, while contentious, did see some real voters who also voted for the AL. Are they then, too, complicit in the crimes of the AL?
Nusraat Faria is not the only one who may have waxed lyrical about the AL or Sheikh Mujib, for that matter. Many within the National Citizen Party (NCP), which was formed in February by a segment of July revolutionaries, have also done exactly the same.
Many of them have even held rallies.
What happened to the list of 626 people? After safely getting those 626 people out, now you're arresting Nusraat Faria in a murder case to make it look like you're delivering justice?
Dissecting this "criminal by association", British journalist David Bergman in a Facebook post today wrote, "It now appears that simply being a known supporter of the Awami League, or having close associations with the party, is enough to make one a target. We have, I think, reached the point where such individuals can no longer feel safe in Bangladesh — where arbitrary arrest on baseless charges becomes a legitimate fear."
He said the country's new civil society seemed indifferent to due process and fairness — focused instead on vengeance and score-settling, with no major political force left to champion basic human rights.
"This is not justice. It is retribution dressed up as accountability. And it should alarm anyone who believes in the rule of law — no matter where they stand politically," he concluded.
Rule of law is one of the interim government's favourite rhetorics. But only when it matters.
Selective justice?
Recently, the interim government made a big show of the UN fact-finding mission, using it as a shield, especially when it came to banning the Awami League.
The same report, however, also cautioned against banning any parties.
But the government selected choice parts, which work in their favour, to make sense of their actions. And this has not gone unnoticed.
Hasnat Abdullah, the chief organiser (south) of NCP, makes this point clear in his most recent Facebook post.
Regarding Faria's arrest, he wrote, "A murderer directly involved in murder was allowed to safely leave the country, and [former speaker of parliament] Shirin Sharmin's passport was made at her home under state supervision.
"…What happened to the list of 626 people? After safely getting those 626 people out, now you're arresting Nusraat Faria in a murder case to make it look like you're delivering justice? This is not justice — this is Hasina-style attention diversion tactics."
Indeed. It feels like the Pori Moni persecution from a couple of years ago, but ramped up.
Aside from a handful, most AL leaders have managed to escape abroad. Name the top AL leaders from memory, and you will see they are traceless if the government is to be believed.
How they did it has never been answered. Who helped them has not been found. When such a disclosure has come to light, no action has been taken.
Only empty promises made, repeatedly, ad nauseam. So much so that even Home Affairs Adviser Lt Gen (retd) Jahangir Alam Chowdhury hesitated today when asked about Nusraat Faria's arrest.
"If there is a case against her, what should we do? If we had let her go, you would have then asked how we allowed it," he said.
Except they have allowed it, when it came to those that really mattered, who could really be charged for crimes of murder and mass killings.
In Fyodor Dostoevsky's classic tale, the protagonist Rodion Raskolnikov sets out on a path of immorality in the hopes that he can undo it through good deeds afterwards.
But once the deed was done, only disgust and guilt remained as the sole companions.
For all its promises of justice and democracy, decisions being made by the interim government are far from the pretty words offered up.
This is looking more like Raskolnikov has been put in charge of key decisions — except this iteration seems to be feeling no guilt. Or even shame.
Disclaimer: The views and opinions expressed in this article are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the opinions and views of The Business Standard.
