It remains unclear who took the step of erasing the caricatures of war criminals Ghulam Azam, Nizami, and Kader Mollah, drawn as part of the “Art Exhibition and Expression of Rebellion through Brush” event organised at Dhaka University’s Jagannath Hall on the occasion of Martyred Intellectuals Day.
Even one day after the incident, no specific information about the erasure of the pictures could be obtained. This reporter contacted Jagannath Hall administration, Dhaka University’s Proctor Office, Public Relations Office, and Estate Office, but each department provided contradictory information.
Jagannath Hall Union has strongly condemned and protested the erasure of the war criminals’ pictures. Sources from the union indicate that as part of the Martyred Intellectuals Day program, students drew pictures of Razakar Ghulam Azam, Nizami, and Kader Mollah on Saturday night. However, the pictures were erased before the scheduled programme began.
Jagannath Hall Union’s Vice-President (VP) Pallab Barman said, “Our event was supposed to start at 11am. But without any discussion with the hall union, the university administration erased the pictures. We strongly condemn and protest this.”
Despite multiple attempts to contact Dhaka University Proctor Saifuddin Ahmed for his comment on this matter, no response was received. However, Assistant Proctor AKM Nur Alam Siddique told TIMES of Bangladesh, “This was removed by the Jagannath Hall administration. The Proctor’s Office has no involvement in this matter.”
On the other hand, Jagannath Hall’s Provost Debashish Pal stated, “The pictures were erased on the instructions of senior university officials.” He further hinted that the decision came from the department responsible for law and order.
However, the university’s Public Relations Office said something else. Acting Director of the Public Relations Office, Mohammad Rafiqul Islam, told TIMES of Bangladesh that the caricatures were erased by the Estate Office.
Despite multiple attempts to contact Dhaka University’s Estate Manager Fatema Binte Mustafa on this issue, she did not respond. Later, on Assistant Estate Manager Md Ali Ashraf’s advise, Junior Security Officer Munir Hossain was contacted, who said, “How would we know about Jagannath Hall’s matter? It might have been done by the hall administration or the Proctor’s Office.”
Regarding this, Jagannath Hall Union’s Literary Secretary Kathak Biswas said, “In the ‘Expression of Rebellion through Brush’ event organised by Jagannath Hall Union, artists from the hall drew pictures independently. The hall union only provided colors; there was no interference in what would be drawn.”
He told TIMES of Bangladesh, “We had informed the administration about the event and segments, but what each person would draw was not predetermined. We consider erasing the pictures in this manner without informing the elected hall union as an authoritarian act by the administration.”
