Bangladesh: Woman journalist called ‘Indian agent’, detained by mob in Dhaka
Police who rescued the woman said she had a panic attack due to the mobbing
In a shocking turn of events, a well-known Bangladeshi TV journalist was detained by a mob in Dhaka for being an alleged supporter of deposed prime minister Sheikh Hasina and had to be rescued by police.
According to local media reports, the incident occurred on Saturday (November 30) when Munni Saha, the woman journalist, was leaving her office. A mob at Dhaka’s Karwan Bazar reportedly intercepted her car and detained her, shouting slogans against her and accusing her of being an Indian agent and a supporter of Hasina. Saha was rescued by Metropolitan Police who took her away in another car.
Journalist not arrested; had panic attack: Police
It was suspected that Saha was arrested as police first took her to Tejgaon Police Station and later to Dhaka Metropolitan Branch office. Police, however, clarified that she was taken to the police station for security reasons and was released on Sunday (December 1) morning. They said that she had a panic attack due to the mobbing and had fallen ill.
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"Police did not detain Munni Saha. She was surrounded by a group of people at Kawran Bazar outside her office. Later, Tejgaon police took her to the DB office for security reasons," Daily Observer quoted a police official as saying.
Police official also added that Saha has four cases against her and is required to appear in court to seek bail.
Police, however, didn’t mention anything about the people who had heckled the journalist.
Targeting of journalists
The incident is one of the many cases where journalists in Bangladesh have been hauled up for their reportage, especially after the fall of the Hasina government. While many journalists have been booked in several cases, the accreditation of several others have been cancelled by the interim government head by Muhammad Yunus.
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The incident also comes in the wake of the arrest of prominent Hindu leader Chinmoy Krishna Das on the charges of sedition, and violent protests in its wake.
