A court here has remanded in judicial custody 38 men accused of lynching a man for allegedly discerating the holy Quran last year. Lalmonirhat senior judicial amli court-3 judge Joynal Abedin sent the accused to judicial custody, turning down their bail pleas, when they surrendered before the court on Wednesday. Lalmonirhat court inspector Md Musa said the 38 men, accused of lynching the man, attacking cops and vandalising the Burimari Union Parishad building in Patgram upazila, were on the run for a long time. On October 29 last year, a mob lynched Sahidunnabi Jewel, 50, a former librarian of Rangpur Cantonment Public School and College, and burnt his body in the upazila accusing him of "disrespecting the Quran". Police have so far arrested 50 people in connection with the crime. Besides, 12 more accused have voluntarily surrendered before the court. Some of the accused are also out on bail. What happened that day? Jewel came to Burimari in the afternoon on October 29 last year with Sultan Zubair Abdar. After offering Asr prayer at the central mosque, he went to get a Quran from a shelf, said Sumonta Kumar Mohonto, officer-in-charge of Patgram Police Station. As he was trying to take one out, a number of Quranic and Hadith books fell at his feet, leading to an argument between him and the Muezzin. Locals took Jewel and Sultan to the Union Parishad office adjacent to the mosque as the argument escalated. A rumour was spread in the market and nearby village that the two men were arrested for "disrespecting the Quran" by the time, according to police and locals. Also read: Muezzin arrested over lynching, burning man in Lalmonirhat At one stage, a group of people swooped on the Union Parishad office. They broke open the door and beat Jewel to death on the spot. The mob did not stop there. It dragged the body to the Patgram-Burimari highway and set it afire. The people also demonstrated in the area. On information, police, Border Guard Bangladesh (BGB) and firefighters rushed to the spot but failed to control the situation. Police also fired 17 shots in the air to disperse the mob. Ten policemen, including the OC, were injured as the mob kept hurling brick chips.  

The United Nations has said journalist Rozina Islam's arrest is obviously "something concerning”, noting that journalists need to be able to do their work free of any sort of harassment or physical threat anywhere around the world. "Look, I've seen…we've seen the press reports on the journalist that was arrested in Bangladesh. It’s, obviously, something that we’re looking at. It’s something that's concerning," said Stephane Dujarric, Spokesman for the UN Secretary-General, in a regular briefing on Tuesday.  Read: Journalists demand unconditional release of Rozina Islam The spokesperson said their position has been clear and obviously that includes Bangladesh and every other country.   "I think we’ve seen the very important work that journalists all around the world have done during the pandemic, and they need to be able to continue that work, wherever they may work," he said. A Dhaka court on Tuesday sent journalist Rozina Islam to judicial custody after rejecting the demand of police to take her on a five-day remand. Read:Rozina’s arrest a black chapter in history of Bangladesh journalism: Editors’ Council She was arrested in a case under the Official Secrets Act on Monday night.  

A Dhaka court on Tuesday sent Prothom Alo senior journalist Rozina Islam, arrested in a case under the Official Secrets Act, to judicial custody after rejecting the police's demand for her five-day remand. Chief Metropolitan Magistrate Mohammad Jashim passed the order after Inspector Arifur Rahman Sardar, the investigating officer in the case, produced the 42-year scribe in the court this morning and sought her remand for custodial interrogation. The court also fixed May 20 for hearing Rozina's bail petition put up by her lawyer Prashanto Kumar Karmakar. Read: Senior journo Rozina produced in court Earlier in the day, Rozina was produced in the court, Deputy Commissioner of Dhaka Metropolitan Police (Ramna Division) Sazzadur Rahman said. Rozina was arrested for allegedly attempting to illegally “collect sensitive government documents and taking photos of them” from the Secretariat on Monday. The Prothom Alo journalist has rejected all the allegations. "I was, in fact, harassed at the Secretariat," she claimed immediately after her arrest. An FIR was filed against Rozina under the Official Secrets Act and sections 379 and 411 of The Penal Code on a complaint filed by the Health Services Division at Shahbagh police station, said Harun ur Rashid, additional deputy commissioner (Ramna Division) of Dhaka Metropolitan Police. Rozina was handed over to police around 9.45pm on Monday after being held at the Secretariat for over five hours. Maidul Islam Pradhan, senior information officer at the Health Ministry, claimed that she had entered the room of the Private Secretary to the Secretary of Health Services Division between 3pm and 3.30pm “without permission”. Read:Prothom Alo senior reporter Rozina arrested under Official Secrets Act “She took photos of sensitive documents. Some of those were recovered from her by the staff of the Health Ministry, including the PS, Additional Secretary of the Ministry and police constable Mizanur Rahman,” he claimed. Health Secretary Lokman Hossain has refused to comment on the matter. Protest over arrest Dozens of journalists thronged the police station after Rozina was brought there and staged a protest against her harassment on Monday night. Jatiya Press Club President Farida Yasmin wrote on her verified Facebook page that Rozina had fallen sick. She also demanded proper treatment of the journalist. Elias Khan, Secretary of the apex journalist organisation, also condemned the alleged misbehaviour of government employees at the Secretariat with the on-duty journalist. Read:Journalists boycott Health Ministry’s press briefing BSRF Boycott On Tuesday morning, members of the Bangladesh Secretariat Reporters Forum (BSRF) boycotted the Health Ministry's press briefing in protest against Rozina's arrest. The BSRF will hold an emergency meeting over the issue, Shamim Ahmed, general secretary of BSRF, said in a release.