Two journalists were allegedly assaulted by a former Krishak Dal leader and his associates in front of Kaliganj Police Station in Jhenaidah Friday night.
The incident occurred around 9pm in the presence of Kaliganj Police Station Officer-in-charge (OC) Jellal Hossain and his force.
Injured journalists Shahriar Alam Sohag and Mission Ali are currently undergoing treatment at the Kaliganj Upazila Health Complex. Sohag is the Jhenaidah district correspondent for Deepto TV and the Kaliganj upazila correspondent for Daily Jugantor, while Mission Ali serves as the Jhenaidah district correspondent for Nagorik TV.
According to victim Mission, the incident stems from a drug-related dispute in Arpara where a youth named Milon Hossain was recently beaten. In connection with this, police detained two individuals, Mithu and Yasin, on Friday evening. Later that night, locals gathered at the police station to discuss the matter with officials.
Mission alleged that OC Jellal summoned Jalal Uddin, an expelled leader of the Krishak Dal, and Shahin Laskar to the station. When journalists arrived to cover the gathering, they witnessed activists from the Jubo Dal and Krishak Dal attacking women who had come to the station.
“When we tried to record the attack on the women, Jalal Uddin, joint convener of the upazila Krishak Dal unit, ordered us to stop, saying that no videos of BNP members could be taken,” Mission said.
He further alleged that several persons including Jalal attacked him.
Journalist Sohag alleged that the OC did not arrest Jalal after the assault but instead provided him with a “safe exit”. He further claimed that the attack was a retaliatory move orchestrated by the OC due to previous news reports regarding the officer’s alleged involvement in the drug trade.
When contacted, Jalal did not provide a statement despite multiple attempts to reach him via mobile.
OC Jellal, however, described the incident as a “scuffle”. He said after police detained suspects in a drug case, a crowd gathered to surround the station. He claimed he requested local BNP leaders to convince the crowd to leave.
“While Jalal and others were trying to assist several women into vehicles, the journalists began filming,” the OC said. He added, “A scuffle broke out when the BNP leaders tried to stop them. Upon seeing this, I removed the BNP activists from the scene and provided security to the journalists”.
The OC denied any conflict with the press, claiming that the police and journalists work together.
