The three leaders of Council for the Preservation of Bangladesh General Students’ Rights, which led protests for reforms to quotas in public service, have claimed that they were dragged into car by undercover law enforcers and later blindfolded.
The Detective Branch (DB) said on Monday that Joint Conveners Nurul Haque Nuru, Rashed Khan and Faruq Hossain were brought in to their offices for ‘questioning as part of their investigations.’
The three left the DB offices after they were shown some video footages and provided information, DB Joint Commissioner Abdul Baten told Bangla Tribune adding that the whole process lasted for less than an hour.
Soon after the law-enforcer’s ‘questioning’, the three leaders addressed the media on the Dhaka University campus, where they claimed of being dragged into cars and blindfolded by DB personnel.
“We went to the Dhaka Medical College Hospital to visit the injured students. As soon as we reached there, we were dragged into a white microbus with tinted glasses. Soon after, we were blindfolded,” Nuru said.
“We were told that they need some information and that we will be shown some video footages, but none of that happened. Later they said we were brought in on intelligence inputs of possible attacks on us,” he added.
“We would have cooperated with them if they needed information.”
Responding to query on why the police let them go, Nuru said, “There were witnesses of the incident and it was reported in the media. So they had to release us.”
Rashed told the media that as soon as they were being taken away, police in Jhenaidah has detained his father.
“He is being pressured to give a statement that he and his son are involved with the Jamaat-e-Islami,” he said before adding that he was not involved with any political organisation.
Earlier in the day, the Council held a media briefing, when they warned of launching street protests again if the police cases against demonstrators are not withdrawn.
The three were taken away soon after that press conference in front of the Dhaka University Central Library.

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