An activist of the Bangladesh Nationalist Party has been arrested allegedly for assaulting former chief election commissioner and freedom fighter KM Nurul Huda in the presence of the police before Sunday鈥檚 arrest of the ex-CEC.
A group of citizens including rights activists, lawyers and academics on Tuesday condemned the Sunday鈥檚 incident wile Huda was humiliated by a mob. The citizens demanded exemplary punishment for those involved in the incident.
Dhaka Metropolitan Police commissioner Md Sazzat Ali told reporters on Tuesday that the force was taking steps to prevent the recurrence of mob attacks.
鈥極ne person has been arrested, and we are proceeding with legal action as we are also registering a case to prevent recurrence of this. Such mob activity has now declined compared with those two or four months ago,鈥� he added.
DMP deputy commissioner of Uttara Division Mohidul Islam said that the man, identified by the single name Hanif, is a local leader of the volunteer wing of the BNP.
鈥楬e was detained by the Army and later handed over to the police. Legal proceedings against him were underway,鈥� he said.
Efforts were underway to arrest others involved in the incident, he said.
The police arrested former CEC Nurul Huda at his Uttara home in the city Sunday evening, hours after the BNP had filed a case against ousted prime minister Sheikh Hasina, three former chief election commissioners and 20 others for their roles in three controversial national elections held in 2014, 2018 and 2024.
Video footage that went viral on social media on Sunday evening showed a mob surrounding the former CEC at Uttara and putting a 鈥榞arland of shoes鈥� around his neck in the presence of the police.
The police later handed him over to the Detective Branch of Dhaka Metropolitan Police.
He later was placed on a four-day remand on Monday.
In a statement on Tuesday, 30 eminent citizens condemned the mob attack on Nurul Huda and urged the authorities to identify the attackers and ensure exemplary punishment for them.
They also demanded justice and accountability through a proper investigation into the allegations against Nurul Huda.
The signatories included rights activist Sultana Kamal, Nijera Kori coordinator Khushi Kabir, Supreme Court lawyers ZI Khan Panna, Sara Hossain, Transparency International Bangladesh executive director Iftekharuzzaman, photographer Shahidul Alam, and Dhaka University associate professor Samina Luthfa.
The Citizens for Good Governance, better known as SHUJAN, in a separate statement, condemned the mob attack and demanded effective measures to end 鈥榤ob violence鈥� in the country.
