A graphic designer employed at the online news portal Dhaka Stream was found dead at her residence in Sobhanbagh, Dhaka on Saturday. The deceased was identified as Sornomoye Biswas.
Emaul Hoque, officer-in-charge (OC) of Sher-e-Bangla Nagar Police Station, said she had locked herself inside her room. Around 6pm, her family members knocked repeatedly but received no answer. Using a spare key, they opened the door and found her hanging from the ceiling fan.
She was taken to a nearby hospital, where doctors pronounced her dead on arrival. Police later recovered the body and sent it to Shaheed Suhrawardy Medical College & Hospital for autopsy. The body was handed over to her family on Sunday following the post-mortem, reports UNB.
The OC confirmed the unnatural death (UD) case was lodged at the Sher-e-Bangla Nagar Police Station by Sornomoye’s brother on Saturday night.
Meanwhile, her death has revived discussions surrounding a previous workplace complaint, sparking speculation on social media about a potential connection.
On 13 July, a formal complaint titled “Lodging complaint against inappropriate behaviour in the workplace” was submitted to Dhaka Stream’s Human Resources Department. The complaint named Altaf Shahnewaz, Bangla content editor at the organisation, with Sornomoye among the complainants.
According to a statement issued by Dhaka Stream on Sunday, Altaf Shahnewaz was immediately removed from newsroom duties following the complaint.
The HR department then formed a 2-member investigation committee consisting of PM Sajal Hossain, head of HR, and Moriom Akter Sume, executive- HR and Admin. After completing their investigation, the committee upheld the decision to keep Altaf Shahnewaz withdrawn from newsroom work.
The complainants reportedly expressed satisfaction with the measures taken. Dhaka Stream also said it later introduced a code of conduct for all employees to reinforce professional behaviour within the workplace.
