Thirty-four students, including 24 from Bangladesh University of Engineering and Technology (Buet), were taken into police custody on Monday on charges of “conspiracy against the government and apprehension of violation of public safety.”
Police picked them up from a boat in the Patlai River when they were headed to the Tekerghat tourist spot on Sunday, according to media reports and police sources.
Among those arrested, six are studying in their first year, six are in their second year, five are in their third year, five are in their fourth year and two are at the postgraduate level.
Out of the remaining 10, seven are former Buet students, and of the other three, two passed their SSC exams this year, with one being a house help for a Buet student.
Parents allege deep conspiracy
Meanwhile, parents of the arrested Buet students claimed in a press briefing on Tuesday that the arrest of the Buet students is part of a deep conspiracy.
They alleged that the police lacked the necessary evidence against the charges brought against the students, insisting that they were framed in a case based on evidence downloaded from the internet.
Demanding their immediate release, the guardians said the children are innocent and that allegations of their involvement in politics are completely baseless and fabricated.
Police say they were planning sabotage
The police, however, claimed that the group came to Sunamganj to conspire against the government and to hold a secret meeting disguised as a visit to Tanguar Haor.
On Monday, Sunamganj Superintendent of Police Mohammed Ehsan Shah told journalists that the arrested students were preparing for sabotage against the government, with the intention of violating public safety and causing loss of life and property.
On Tuesday, the SP was contacted but did not respond to a query about the arrested students' involvement with Jamaat-Shibir.
However, Additional Superintendent of Police (Crime and Ops) Rajan Kumar Das told reporters that they have obtained a few documents and that investigations are underway to uncover the actual scenario.
Local journalists and police reported that the arrested students arrived in Tahirpur upazila on Sunday morning, rented a houseboat and spent the day visiting Tanguar Haor.
In the afternoon, as they were headed to Tekerghat, police intercepted the boat with two speedboats in the Patlai River.
The students were then detained and taken to Thahirpur police station, where a case was filed against them under the Anti-Terrorism Act.
A district court subsequently ordered all 34 students to be sent to jail after they were produced before it on Monday.
