The reported attack on actress Azmeri Haque Badhan in Venice has drawn strong condemnation from Information and Broadcasting Adviser Zahed Ur Rahman and the National Citizen Party (NCP), with both calling for action over the incident.
Badhan, who is in Italy for the Venice premiere of Rubaiyat Hossain’s The Difficult Bride, has alleged that she was physically assaulted and harassed by a group while visiting a local park with her brother and his family. She said the attackers pelted her with water, soft drinks and eggs, knocked her phone from her hand and struck her near the ear. She later filed a complaint with local police.
Zahed: ‘Awami League is a mafia gang’
Speaking at the government’s regular weekly briefing at the Press Information Department conference room at the Secretariat on Tuesday, Zahed condemned the incident and said he does not consider the Awami League a political party.
“I do not consider the Awami League a political party. It is a mafia gang,” he said.
Zahed said the Awami League’s activities repeatedly reveal what the organisation is and what it represents. He questioned whether a group that, in his view, shows no minimum sense of responsibility and has no trace of public interest in its activities should be allowed to engage in politics in Bangladesh.
Referring to the attack on Badhan, the adviser said being targeted by what he described as a mafia gang showed that the actress had been on the right path.
Zahed also recalled Badhan’s courageous role during the July-August 2024 mass uprising, describing it as a form of achievement and honour for her.
He said the process of taking legal action against the alleged network had already begun and that the government would not leave the matter unresolved.
Addressing concerns over possible future attacks, Zahed said there was no reason to fear Sheikh Hasina’s followers after a ruler such as her had been forced to leave the country. He said the days of escaping accountability through intimidation were over and that the government would take a firm position against what he described as an “evil force”.
NCP condemns attack, demands action
The NCP has also strongly condemned the alleged attack and demanded that those responsible face justice.
In a joint statement, NCP Convener Nahid Islam and Member Secretary Akhter Hossen said the reported assault on Badhan showed that the Awami League’s alleged violent mindset had not changed.
They described Badhan as a prominent cultural figure and a participant in the July mass uprising. The party alleged that Awami League-linked activists carried out the attack in Venice, physically harassing Badhan and members of her family, including a woman and a child.
The NCP further alleged that the attackers were close to Sajeeb Wazed Joy, who was in Venice at the time, and that some of those involved had taken photographs with him and shared them on social media.
The party claimed the attackers forced Badhan to chant “Joy Bangla, Joy Bangabandhu”. It said the incident demonstrated an attempt to extend political violence against July movement activists beyond Bangladesh.
The NCP said reconciliation with what it described as the Awami League’s “fascist” group was impossible. It said those who attack July movement activists abroad should face the law and described the activists as a national asset.
The party urged the Foreign Ministry and the government to work with Italian authorities to identify and arrest those allegedly involved. It also demanded that their visas be cancelled, that they be deported to Bangladesh and that they face legal action.
The NCP called on Bangladesh’s embassies to play an effective role in protecting July movement activists, expatriate political activists and ordinary Bangladeshi citizens abroad.
The party warned that the government would face a strong response if those involved in the Venice incident were not deported through diplomatic and legal channels and brought to justice. It said the NCP would continue to build resistance against what it described as the allies of fascism on domestic and international platforms.
