Stalkers critically wounded a schoolteacher in Cox’s Bazar on Monday and two madrassah managing committee members in Noakhali on Tuesday as they protested at the harassment of girls.
The police had arrested two persons — a relative of the people who attacked the schoolteacher in Cox’s Bazar and one of the people who attacked the managing committee members in Noakhali.
Earlier, Natore college teacher Mizanur Rashid was attacked for similar reasons. He died on October 24 in Dhaka after being wounded on October 12 by stalkers for protesting at harassment of girls.
In Teknaf, the critically wounded Mohammad Manik Mia, 38, a teacher of the Maheskhalia Para Government Primary School, was admitted to Teknaf health complex.
In Noakhali, the two injured members of the Nurani Talimul Qur’an Madrassah managing committee, Mujibur Rahman, 45, and Manjur Morshed, 25, were admitted to Noakhali General Hospital.
The New Age correspondent in Cox’s Bazar said Mohammad Hanif, a resident of Dakkhin Mohskhalia Para, had attacked Manik as he protested at harassment of girls and women, especially his wife, who is also a teacher of the school.
Manik’s wife Mortoja Begum filed a case against five people. The accused are Md Hanif, his elder brother Syed Hossen, 40, their mother Rawsan Akter, Jamila Akter, wife of Hanif’s brother Jahid Hossen and Mokarram Hossen, 35, brother-in-law of Hanif.
The police arrested Jamila Akter, 22, wife of Jahid Hossen, who is brother of the main accused Md Hanif at Dakkhin Maheskhalia Para in the afternoon in connection with the attack.
The Teknaf police officer-in-charge, Abul Hasem, in the evening told New Age, ‘We already arrested a person accused. Others accused, including the main suspect Mohammad Hanfi, are in hiding. We are trying to arrest them.’
Ukhiya circle assistant superintendent of police Chatradhar Tripra visited the spot in the afternoon and went to hospital to see Manik Mia. He instructed the Teknaf police to arrest the accused in the case.
Manik alleged that Hanif had been harassed his wife Mortoja, 30, on her way to school for about a year. Mortoja, earlier lodged a complaint with the upazila education officer and upazila coordination committee against Hanif.
Later on July 8, she told an upazila education meeting of being harassed by Hanif. Lawmaker Abdur Rahman attended the meeting.
The upazila education officer then transferred Mortoja Begum to the Maheskhalia Para Government Primary School as instructed by the lawmaker.
The school she has been transferred to is very close to her house but Hanif did not stop harassing her as the authorities concerned had not taken any action against Hanif.
Hanif intercepted Mortoja on her way on Sunday morning and said he loved her.
Hanif and two of his brothers attacked Manik with sticks the next day when he was mobilising people’s opinions at a tea stall about 4:30pm against harassment of girls.
Local people rescued Manik and sent him to hospital.
The correspondent in Noakhali said stalkers had attacked the madrassah’s managing committee members as they had protested at the harassment of a girl student at Binodpur of Sudharam on Tuesday.
The injured Mujibur Rahman, 45, and Manjur Morshed, 25, members on the madrassah’s managing committee, were admitted to Noakhali General Hospital.
The lawmen, along with local people, arrested the main suspect, Mozammel Hossain Riaz, 25, a resident of Jalial.
Binodpur union council member Rawshan Akhter, quoting local people, said Riaz had harassed a female student of the institution for about a year.
The student informed her teachers of the matter and they took up the allegation with Mujibur Rahman, the general secretary of the madrassah governing committee.
Rawshan said Mujibur, along with the committee’s finance affairs secretary Manjur Morshed, went to the house of Riaz to talk with his parents. Riaz and his elder brother Rashed then beat them up.
The police then went to the spot and arrested Riaz with the help of the villagers.
The Sudharam police officer-in-charge, Mosharraf Hossain Tarafder, said, ‘Two cases were filed in this regard.’
