Former state minister for home affairs Tanjim Ahmad Sohel Taj visited the Detective Branch office on Monday to inquire about six detained coordinators of the quota reform movement but was not permitted to meet them and did not receive any satisfactory answers regarding their release
Sohel Taj, son of Bangladesh's first prime minister Tajuddin Ahmad, arrived at the DB office on Minto Road at around 5pm, staying there for about an hour and a half.
Speaking to reporters outside the DB office at about 7pm, Sohel Taj said he had gone there to inquire about the movement coordinators “guided by his conscience.”
He asked DB chief Harunor Rashid why the coordinators had been brought in, whether they had been arrested and when they would be released.
Sohel Taj said he had not received satisfactory answers to any of these questions.
"I asked three questions," said Sohel Taj. "My first question was whether the coordinators were arrested or taken into safe custody. If they were arrested, I have no demands. But if they were in safe custody, I wanted to meet them. The DB chief later informed me, after consulting with senior officials, that the six coordinators were taken into safe custody because they were concerned about their safety."
"I then asked how they knew that the coordinators were concerned about their safety. Did they inform or request you? He (Harunor Rashid) said no, they learned this through monitoring. Since they are in safe custody, I wanted to meet them. In response, I was told that I would need permission from higher authorities to meet them,” the former state minister added.
"My third question was when the coordinators would be released from safe custody. The DB chief replied that they would be released when the higher authorities issued instructions."
Further explaining his visit, Sohel Taj said: "There is unrest in the country over the quota reform movement. Hundreds of people have died. Many lives have been lost, from innocent 5-year-olds to 8-10-15-16-year-old students, and ordinary people. This has hurt us all. It has shaken our conscience. It is because of this conscience that I came to the DB office."
Questioning the need for the coordinators' detention, Sohel Taj said: "If a citizen requests, they can be taken into safe custody. But if they are taken into safe custody without making a request, is it really safe custody or an arrest?"
Regarding losses incurred during the student movement, Sohel Taj said the damage caused by the student movement was nothing compared to the value of life.
The destroyed properties could be rebuilt with public tax money, “but can we get back even one life that we lost? Can this life be returned?” he asked.
“We must remember what is most important. The value of a life is far greater than crores of taka."
Addressing law enforcement agencies, Sohel Taj said not a single bullet should hit any student.
In response to a question about whether the government was taking any wrong steps, Sohel Taj said a comprehensive solution was needed. “The first task is to investigate each killing individually and bring those responsible to justice. Extrajudicial killings cannot be allowed. This solution must be reached politically, through discussions with everyone."
When asked if he had any message for the protesters, Sohel Taj said: "This country is yours. You have to build it. Do not lose hope. Better days will come, do not give up hope. This country is your asset. You have to build it."
DB officers picked up Nahid Islam and two other coordinators from the capital's Gonoshasthaya Nagar Hospital last Friday afternoon, where they were undergoing treatment. Over the next two days, they brought in the remaining coordinators.
Late on Sunday, Nahid and others announced the withdrawal of their protests in a video message while in custody.
Around the same time, DB chief Harunor Rashid posted a picture on Facebook of himself having a meal with the coordinators at a table.
During a hearing of a writ petition in the High Court on Monday, the High Court questioned the actions, stating: "Who asked you to do this? Why did you do this? Do not mock the nation."
Many on social media also commented on the DB chief's photo. Additionally, several movement coordinators issued statements expressing their disagreement with the message of withdrawing the protests while in DB custody.
