Police allegedly knocked down a female teacher of Dhaka University during the ‘March for Justice’ programme near the High Court in the capital on Wednesday.
The incident happened when Shehreen Amin Bhuiyan, a teacher of Department of Public Administration, and her colleague Prof Nusrat Jahan Chowdury tried to stop the police from taking a student into custody.
According to witnesses, Shehreen and Nusrat confronted the police while they were trying to arrest the student from the road between High Court intersection and Doel Chattar.
Following an altercation, a police officer allegedly twisted Shehreen’s arm and knocked her down. She felt pain in her hands, knees and feet.
Video footage shows Shehreen trying to protect the student who was being detained by the police. Shehreen refused to allow the police to check the student's phone, saying that “you cannot do so.” The situation got worse when the police officer threatened to use force.
Shehreen said, “The incident took place suddenly and I am shocked by this incident.”
“I am concerned about the innocent student as we could not bring him back from the hands of police,” she added.
Prof Nusrat, who was present during the altercation, expressed deep frustration following the incident. She said, "We came here only to stand by our students. As teachers, if we cannot support them, we lose the moral right to teach them." The incident has also sparked outrage among the university teachers and beyond, raising concerns about the excesses of police and misbehaviour with educators and students, she said.
