JU Correspondent
Jahangirnagar University’s students protested on demanding release of Shamsujjaman Shams, Self-correspondent for Prothom Alo on Friday at 3pm on blocking the Dhaka-Aricha Highway near the gate of the university.
The students began the Protest march from the front of the registar building of this university to the highway. After blocking the highway for a quarter of an hour, the students concluded that protest.
Taposhi Dey Prapti, student of the Economics department, said in the protest; “What is going on in our state in the name of freedom? The report for which Mr Shams was detained featured ordinary Bangladeshis talking about the escalating price of food-things is an image of daily life. Arresting a journalist in the night in plain-clothes is a matter of shame. Even after picking him up, they staged a drama in day long, nobody said where he was. While a journalist was hidden, how did the state ensure him the security?”
Alif Mahmud, Student of English Department, said, “We didn’t have British rule, even the rule of Yahya Khan before 1971, but today we are noticing their wraith era. The comment of the day labour what Mr. Shams wrote is the voice of core citizens of the country. The exercised politics of strangling the throat while raising the truth needs to be stopped. The victory of truth appeared in 1971 and 1990 by abolishing autocratic rule. Where is the flourished discourse of freedom of speech?”
He added: “If the government attempts to off the voice by applying the Digital Security Act, there will be a revolution. Shams must be returned to his mother without any condition, neither will the revolution flourished all over the country from JU.”
“Is the reporting of food and meat a crime? Shams is picked to jail for the reporting. The behaviour of the government is very autocratic. We demand the release of Shamsujjaman Shams without any conditions and the ridiculous case needs to be withdrawn. Shams didn’t make any mistakes, he just did what was his duty” said the student of Media and Journalism study, Sumaiya Ferdous.
Shamsujjaman Shams, staff correspondent for Prothom Alo, who was picked up by plain-clothed Police force for reporting the escalating price of food-things, sued under the Digital Security Act (DSA) and sent to jail.