Jatiya Chhatra Shakti chief Hasib attacked in Sreemangal; assailant calls him ‘July militant’

Hasib Al Islam, a coordinator of the Anti-Discrimination Student Movement and president of Dhaka University-based student organisation Jatiya Chhatra Shakti, an affiliate of the National Citizen Party (NCP), was attacked in Sreemangal, Moulvibazar, on Tuesday.

The incident took place in front of Balishira Resort in the Radhanagar area of Sreemangal upazila around 12pm.

Hasib had travelled to Sreemangal for a visit. Around noon on Tuesday, while travelling in a battery-run auto-rickshaw (tomtom) with a young woman, a man stopped the vehicle, called him a “July militant” and attempted to attack him with a machete, leaving him injured.

A video of the incident has since circulated on social media.

Mohammad Wahiduzzaman Raju, assistant superintendent of police of the Sreemangal Circle in Moulvibazar, confirmed the incident.

He said they had tried to contact Hasib following the attack but could not reach him by phone. “Efforts are underway to identify those involved in the incident and bring them to justice,” he said.

Kamrul Hossain Chowdhury, in-charge of the Sreemangal zone of Tourist Police, said, “We have not received any formal complaint.” He added that they are looking into the matter.

Sreemangal Police Station Officer-in-Charge (OC) Sarkar Abdul Al Mamun said, “We also searched for him at the hospital but could not find him. Through an NCP member, we learnt that he had left Sreemangal.”

“We have also sent an officer to the scene. We will know the details once he returns,” he added.

Meanwhile, Khaled Hasan, convener of the NCP's Moulvibazar district unit, said, “We discussed the incident with central leaders after learning about it.”

The video footage shows a man approaching the moving auto-rickshaw and making abusive and provocative remarks directed at Hasib. “Here is July militant Hasib, enjoying himself here with a girl after selling the country,” the man is heard saying.

At one point, the man shakes hands with Hasib before making further offensive remarks and suddenly lunging towards him. A commotion follows, and Hasib runs away from the scene. The man is seen holding a locally made machete.

Several employees of Balishira Resort, speaking on condition of anonymity, said Hasib had been staying at the resort for the past three days. He checked out on Tuesday and boarded a battery-run auto-rickshaw to travel to Chattogram.

They said a man armed with a machete attacked them shortly after they left the resort, forcing Hasib to flee back to the resort for safety. The employees later noticed machete wounds on his hand.

Resort authorities bandaged the injury and tried to stop the bleeding. Hasib then resumed his journey towards the railway station by auto-rickshaw to travel to Chattogram.