Staff Reporter :
The members of the Rapid Action Battalion (RAB) baton charged the activists of Ganajagaran Mancha as they gathered to form a human chain near the city’s Shahbagh intersection to protest the ‘indiscriminate extra-judicial killings’ during the ongoing anti-drug crackdown. RAB personnel also picked up the Mancha leader Imran H Sarker while he was attempting to attend the rally as the chief guest in front of National Museum around 4:15pm on Wednesday.
At least 10 people, including two online coordinators of the pro-liberation front, were injured during action of RAB-Police on the protesting. Four of them were sent to Dhaka Medical College and Hospital instantly.
They gathered in the spot to hold a protest rally after forming a human chain where they publicly played the audio clips on Ekram killing in Teknaf on May 26.
The Mancha’ activists claimed that they tried to stage a rally under the banner of Ganajagaran Mancha protesting the killing’ of unarmed people without any judicial process in the name of ‘gunfights’ across the country since May 12.
As per plan, they called people to attend the rally for protesting ‘Extra Judicial Killing’ though opening a Facebook event.
Criticizing the countrywide drive, they called upon the government to step back from decision of killing people without any judicial process.
Contacted, Mufti Mahmud Khan, Director to Legal and Media Wing of RAB, told The New Nation on Wednesday, Imran was detained from Shahbagh as he came out from a private car to join the rally.
“He was arrested on charge of organising an illegal gathering. There are more charges against him. We are looking into the matter,” the RAB spokesman said.
However, RAB could not release any information abut his whereabouts and stating of the previous or they are filing new case after picking up.
Reazul Alam Bhuiyan, one of the protest organisers, said, “Imran arrived in front of the National Museum at Shahbagh at 4:10pm to join the scheduled programme. But he was immediatelypicked him up.”
We don’t know of his whereabouts after detention by the RAB personnel, he said.
Earlier, Police stopped a rally planned for Monday and said Ganajagaran Mancha had no permission to hold the protest programme. Imran then announced a new plan to hold the demonstration yesterday (June 6) at the same venue after meeting all formalities, according to him.
Chhtra Union’s city unit president Dipak Sheel said that at least 10 activists were injured as the RAB personnel charged baton the activists when some plaine-clothes men picked up Imran by a private cars.
Shahbagh Police Station Officer-in-Charge (OC) Abul Hasan said that police did not pick up Imran.
He also confirmed that RAB-3 arrested Imran.
Earlier, a Dhaka court had issued an arrest warrant against Imran on 26 October 2017 on charge of skipping a hearing in a defamation suit filed for making derogatory remarks about prime minister Sheikh Hasina.
He, however, got the bail in the case in November last.
