Journalists of Dinajpur working with local and national print and electronic media formed a human chain in protest at an attack on journalists of Ekushey Television in Rangpur and the harassment of the Dinajpur correspondent of the Daily Star by a mobile court.
The journalists also demanded punishment of the people responsible for the attack and the harassment.
A group on July 11, a gang at Kashiganj of Badarganj attacked the Rangpur correspondent of Ekushey Television Liakat Ali Badal in which he was seriously injured.
The incident took place when Badal along with ETV staff reporter Johnson Mahbub went there to cover an incident of torture on two women.
As soon as the ETV team reached the place, the gang encircled them and beat up Liakat with bamboo sticks. They also assaulted Johnson Mahbub and the cameraman and took away the camera.
They were confined to a house and the police and other senior officials later rescued them.
Kongkon Karmaker, the Dinajpur correspondent of the Daily Star, was allegedly harassed by a mobile court, led by Pratap Chandra Biswas, the Phulbari upazila nirbahi officer, during the UP elections in Biral on July 2.
A written complaint was lodged with Dinajpur's deputy commissioner in this regard the next day.
The complaint said that during polling, the Kongkon was going to Kaliaganj at Dharmapur of Biral to cover the election riding his motorcycle. He had with him Election Commission documents required to cover the event.
But the mobile court stooped him at Ranipukur and after the examination of his papers, the law enforces let him go.
But the upazila nirbahi officer, who is an executive magistrate, about five minutes later, stopped him again chasing him down about two kilometres and checked the documents of his vehicle and his driving licence for about half an hour.
The upazila nirbahi officer finally let him go after asking him the registration number of his motorcycle.
The participants in the human chain condemned the incidents. The Dinajpur Press Club president Chitta Ghosh, also ETV's Dinajpur correspondent, Somoy Television's Dinajpur correspondent Golam Nabi Dulal, Humayun Kabir of ATN Bangla and Shah Alam Shahi of Channel I also spoke.
Source : New Age
