But what’s even more troubling is the campaign of harassment that Mondal’s family has been undergoing following his unlawful detention, reportedly at the hands of law enforcers themselves.
A teacher of mathematics and science at Binodpur Ram Kumar High School in Munshiganj, Mondal was relieved of his duties and subsequently detained without warning late last month, with two requests for bail having been denied.
According to reports, Mondal was heard making a distinction between science and religion in an audio clip of his classroom lecture, with no evidence that he had done so by singling out any specific religion.
There is no rationale with which Mondal’s detention can be justified. But with his family now under threat from locals, and law enforcers seemingly complicit in their harassment, the whole affair begs to be questioned.
If allegations of Mondal’s removal from the school and his detention being part of an elaborate scheme by vested quarters hold any weight, they must be investigated immediately.
The arguments cited behind the arrest fall apart immediately, as making a distinction between religion and science does not go against anything etched in our constitution.
Introducing people to new ideas is the very pillar upon which education is founded, and attempting a conversation with students about science and religion is not the same as attacking a religion.
However, as the investigations are still ongoing, the harassment that the victim’s family is facing is unlawful, and those involved in this campaign must be brought to book, regardless of their affiliations.
If academics are allowed to be suspended and detained just for doing their job, then all hope is lost.
