Bangladesh Federal Union of Journalists (BFUJ) and Dhaka Union of Journalists (DUJ) on Tuesday expressed deep concern over a cybercrime case filed against NTV Joint News Editor Mujtaba Khandakar and called for its immediate withdrawal.

In a joint statement, BFUJ acting President Obaidur Rahman Shahin, General Secretary Kader Gani Chowdhury, and DUJ President Md Shahidul Islam and general secretary Khurshid Alam expressed their worry over the matter.

The case was lodged on November 3 at Shahbagh Police Station by Dhaka University teacher Shehherin Amin Bhuiyan. She alleged that Khandakar had posted an edited obscene photo of her on Facebook with offensive and defamatory comments, causing her mental distress.

Responding to the allegations, Khandakar said his personal Facebook account was hacked on October 30 around 6:00 pm, resulting in an automatic log-out.

He lost control over the account for five to six hours.

With the assistance of a US-based IT expert, he regained access later that night.

He said he had no knowledge of any posts made from his account during the period it was compromised.

Khandakar filed a general diary at Tejgaon Police Station on November 6.

BFUJ and DUJ leaders said cyber attacks and harassment of journalists are increasing, often without proper investigation.

They urged law enforcement agencies to verify such incidents before taking legal action.

The journalist unions demanded the immediate withdrawal of the case against Mujtaba Khandakar.