College student arrested after Facebook rant over electricity bill

Gacha Police Station in Gazipur has arrested a student after he posted a Facebook video criticising the BNP government and Prime Minister Tarique Rahman over soaring electricity bills.

Police detained Sifat Abdullah, a student of Adamjee Cantonment College, from his home on Thursday night after a one-minute video of him went viral on social media.

“You know everything. A case will be filed against him and he will be sent to the court,” Sub-Inspector Mamun of Gacha Police Station told Waadaa.

In the video, Sifat showed his electricity bills and complained about being charged around 4,000 taka and 5,000 take in the past two months. He also used abusive language against the BNP government.

The arrest triggered backlash on social media, with critics questioning whether the use of abusive language in political speech should be grounds for arrest.

Jamaat leader and Supreme Court lawyer Advocate Shishir Manir drew a distinction between Sifat’s language and the grievance expressed in his video.

“Sifat’s language cannot be supported. But the substance of his anger—the excessive electricity bill—is 100% justified. This is the sentiment of ordinary people,” he wrote on Facebook.

Facebook user Anisur Rahman also condemned the arrest.

“Ordinary people resort to harsh language or behaviour only when they are pushed to the wall,” he wrote.

Journalist Qadaruddin Shishir wrote on Facebook that while Sifat’s choice of language could be criticised, that did not give the police grounds to arrest him without specific allegations.

“What language they use to swear is a matter of their own taste. But you will violate their rights and then, when they swear in protest, arrest them by raising the question of ‘good taste’? How strange!” he wrote.