Accusing the government of failing to maintain law and order, Hasib Al Islam, a coordinator of the Anti-Discrimination Student Movement and president of the Dhaka University unit of Jatiya Chhatra Shakti, who was attacked in Sreemangal on Tuesday, said the assailant had swung a machete at his head with the intention of killing him.
Speaking to Daily Waadaa, he alleged that the attacker was an Awami League supporter and that the party's activists treated it as a religion.
“Awami League has become a religion to them. They consider even killing people justifiable in the name of this religion. The way they are operating is clearly inciting militancy,” he said.
Speaking over the phone, Hasib said he was receiving treatment in Cumilla and had received three stitches in his left leg, which was injured in the machete attack.
Describing the incident, he said the assailant had suddenly started hacking at him with a machete in a militant-style attack.
Although the attacker swung at his head, he managed to defend himself, the student leader said.
Hasib added that his wife, who was with him, had also been traumatised by the incident.
“The person who attacked me is neither someone I know nor someone I have ever seen before. He attacked me and tried to strike my head simply because I led the July Mass Uprising,” he said.
The president of the Dhaka University unit of Chhatra Shakti said clandestine attacks had increased across the country because of the failure to ensure justice for the July massacre.
In his immediate reaction, the Chhatra Shakti leader accused the government of failing to maintain law and order.
He claimed that the rise in militant-style attacks by Awami League members across the country was a result of the situation being beyond the government's control.
Pointing out that intelligence agencies and government bodies were not functioning properly, Hasib alleged that “domestic and foreign agencies are conspiring to carry out targeted killings of leaders of the July Mass Uprising”.
“People expected the law and order situation to improve. They were also saying that things would get better after the election. But in reality, snatching, rape and murder are increasing after the election,” he said.
Hasib Al Islam was accompanied by his wife when the attack took place at around 12pm on Tuesday in front of Balishira Resort in the Radhanagar area of Sreemangal.
He told Daily Waadaa that his wife had been mentally shattered by the sudden attack.
Hasib said his family had also been put at risk because he was a frontline leader of the July Uprising.
“Not only my own safety, but my family's safety is also not being ensured. The sudden emergence of these clandestine, militant-style attacks would naturally put anyone in a state of psychological distress. It is not just my wife; my entire family has been traumatised by this incident,” he said.
“Awami League violence is increasing because justice for the massacre has not been ensured. They are inciting militancy. If I cannot even go out with my wife, then what change did we fight for?” Hasib added.
The injured Chhatra Shakti leader also questioned the media's conduct in the immediate aftermath of the incident and expressed disappointment.
He said that despite such a serious attack intended to kill him, the media had focused on his personal and family life instead of highlighting the attack.
Hasib expressed hope that the media would uphold human rights, serve as the voice of the oppressed and prioritise objective journalism.
Hasib Al Islam, a familiar face of the July Uprising, was attacked with a machete in front of Balishira Resort in the Radhanagar area of Sreemangal at around 12pm on Tuesday. A video of the incident subsequently went viral on social media.
The video shows Hasib Al Islam and his wife travelling in a battery-powered autorickshaw along the road in front of the resort. At the time, the person recording the video can be heard hurling abuses at Hasib.
After the autorickshaw stops, the man shakes hands with Hasib and makes further objectionable remarks towards him. He then suddenly lunges at Hasib.
Hasib gets out of the autorickshaw and starts running to defend himself. Towards the end of the video, the shadow falling on the ground suggests that the attacker was holding a machete.