The Detective Branch (DB) has refuted allegations of blindfolding quota reform protest leaders.
Three leaders of Council for the Preservation of Bangladesh General Students’ Rights, which led protests for reforms to quotas in public service, were taken to the DB headquarters on Monday from the Dhaka University campus.
Joint Conveners Rashed Khan, Nurul Huq and Faruq Hossain were released after two hours following what the police had said questioning for an ongoing investigation.
The three leaders, however, claimed they were dragged into a car by DB personnel before they were blindfolded.
Speaking to the media on Tuesday, DB Joint Commissioner Abdul Baten denied of blindfolding them before describing the whole incident as a ‘misunderstanding’.
“There has been a misunderstanding. We have no interest in the quota reform protests. We are investigating the attack on the vice-chancellor’s residence,” he added.
The senior DB officer said that they would seek cooperation from students. “Students will be asked to come in at the DB offices to provide information leading to arrest of the perpetrators.”
Responding to a query on allegations by protest leaders, Baten said, “It’s a clear case of misunderstanding. There are no charges against them.”
Prior to whisking away of the three leaders, calls for launching a street protest was made if the police cases against the demonstrators were not withdrawn.
Joint Commissioner Baten, however, denied of any connections between the call and the incident.
“Theirs is no connection between the demand and bringing them in to the DB offices. They (protesters) can explain better about their statements.”

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