Dr. Syed Nesar Ahmad Rumy :
Within a couple of weeks some incidents happened in our country made all of us stunned and speechless. The incident at Narail made all of us stunned. It was reported that a college student posted a status supporting Nupur Sharma, spokesperson of BJP of India who made derogatory remarks against Prophet (sm) and it created sensation among his friends. His friends wanted him to delete the remarks from his face book page. But he did not turn up. In this consequence, a group of his friends caught him and produced him to the principal for this. The principal of that college could not settle the matter rather he informed the local police. But after that the situation had to go out of his control and emotionally charged students and public put shoe-garland to the principal’s neck. It was also reported that high officials of the district were present at the place of occurrence.
How come such incident happened in a broad day light in front of members of law enforcing agency! It is a very big question. After it came to the media a huge hue and cry started across the country. This incident is the insult to the highest order to the teacher’s community in Bangladesh. It is very much a shamed event and anyone can question about the moral of our society. Are we truly living in a civilized society? Had we wanted this Bangladesh? Had we fought the war of independence to see such type of incidents after fifty years of our independence?
Right to self-respect is universal. No double standard shall be entertained in this respect. Latest report says the student made that remarks has been arrested and some who took initiative to put on shoe-garland to the principal have also been arrested and they are now in the lockup. Another incident happened in Rajshahi created sensation also across the country. The incident was that a local Lawmaker of Rajshahi area assaulted a college principal in his (lawmaker) local office room in front of a number of other principals of different colleges of that locality. The assaulted principal took primary treatment and later it was made public and it created a big sensation across the country. For that reason National University constituted a three members committee to probe this matter. After happening this, the assaulted principal made a statement denying the fact sitting by the side of the lawmaker. As reported in the media, people did not believe this statement made by the assaulted principal. It is conceived that that it is a concerted initiative to repair the image of him (lawmaker) in connivance some other loyal principals and college teachers. By any consideration it is a shameful event and the accused made himself little to the eye of general people.
The incident happened at Uttara a couple of weeks back is another sensational event. Different national newspapers made reports on this issue. We know university is the center of excellence and the faculties are the persons to be followed. But a private university teacher molested one of his girl students in his residence in the name of barbecue party. This was clearly a sexual harassment. Police arrested that teacher after getting complaint from that student. What picture we get from this incident is very much dark in nature. Our society has gone to such a stage that ethics and morality are not getting the priority. This is one incident but there might have many which did not come to the light. So to protect the morality and environment of the center of excellence we all should try to stop such type of incidents in the educational institutions. Otherwise society might go worse further.
Another incident happened few weeks back in the courtroom of a bench of high court. A fifteen year girl from Nilfamari entered the courtroom with her mother and told the judges that she had been raped by a member of law enforcing agency and did not get justice from the lower court at Nilfamari as the court acquitted the accused. This is very much unprecedented event that a minor girl directly went into the courtroom of the high court bench. It indicates that socially weak people feel themselves so suppressed that the girl had to do this. Without any lawyer, having the verbal complaint the learned bench gave the documents carried by that girl to a lawyer of SCLAC (Supreme Court legal aid committee) to look after the case.
The incidents happened in Mymenshing and Mirsarai are very much and touchy. A family of four members was going to hospital crossing the road. Suddenly, a speedy truck ran over them. Report said the mother was pregnant and she was in advance stage. She, her husband, daughter were killed instantly but miraculously she gave birth a female child with injury survived and hospitalized. How painful the event was that a child lost her parents before seeing the light of this world.
The most tragic accident happened on a railway level crossing made the people of our country stunned and speechless. The young eleven persons were killed on the spot and some were injured. This incident indicates that our system does not function always properly in a very sensitive spot. It is reported that the gate was open during the incident and for that reason on the rail track a CTG bound speedy train hit the microbus and dragged it to a half a kilometer away. All the passengers went to a fun trip to see a spring nearby. The accident could have been avoided if the passengers and driver of the microbus would have been in no hurry and a bit conscious during crossing the rail track.
All these incidents show the behavioral pattern of our society. Nowadays, we are very much unrestrained and gradually it is increasing. All the incidents mentioned above indicating our society is very much unbalanced we are always dominated by emotion and often it defeats logic in many special and important occasions. So the high-ups of our country and society should come forward and take appropriate measure to stop such type of incidents and try to establish ethical and moral values in our surroundings. This is the high time the nation needs it.
(The writer is a former civil
servant and freelancer).
