Dhaka:
Nobel laureate Muhammad Yunus-led interim government in Bangladesh has ordered a probe after a group of madrasa students attacked a stall at the Amar Ekushey Book Fair in Dhaka over the display of a book written by exiled author Taslima Nasreen. Strongly condemning the mob attack, Chief Adviser Yunus said it was a display of “contempt” for both the “rights of Bangladeshi citizens and for the laws of our country.”
“The Chief Adviser strongly condemns the mob attack on a bookstall at Ekushey Book Fair. The attack shows contempt for both the rights of Bangladeshi citizens and for the laws of our country,” Mr Yunus’s office said in a statement.
“Such violence betrays the open-minded spirit of this great Bangladeshi cultural fixture, which commemorates the language martyrs who lost their lives on February 21, 1952, in defence of their mother tongue. Today, the Ekushey Boimela (Ekushey Book Fair) is a daily meeting place for our writers and readers,” it added.
Ordering an investigation into the matter, the Chief Advisor asked security agencies to take “strong measures” to stop “any incidents of mob violence” in the country.
“The Interim Government has ordered police and the Bangla Academy to investigate the incident and bring the culprits to book. Police have been ordered to step up security in the fair and make sure no untoward incidents take place in this very important space. The government has also ordered the concerned security agencies to take strong measures to stop any incidents of mob violence in the country,” the Chief Advisor’s office said in a statement.
What Happened?
According to police and eyewitnesses, the incident took place at the bookstall of Sabyasachi Publication, the publisher of Nasreen.
“A group of agitators came to Sabyasachi Prakashani and started shouting first why Taslima Nasreen’s book was kept in the stall. Later Publisher Shatabdi Bhava was attacked by the people. They threw away Taslima’s book”, a witness had said.
Taslima Nasreen is a Bangladeshi writer, physician, feminist, and secular activist. Police said the situation came under control after both the publisher and the agitators from the spot.
“The panic was there due to tensions between some students of the Qaumi Madrasa and the publisher of Sabyasachi Prokashoni,” Police Official Masud Alam told ANI over the phone.
Later, police took both parties to the police station, where they were questioned about the reason behind the tension.
Several purported videos of the attack have gone viral on social media. Ms Nasreen also shared one such video on X and wrote, “Today, jihadist religious extremists attacked the stall of the publisher Sabyasachi at Bangladesh’s book fair. Their ‘crime’ was publishing my book.”
Today, jihadist religious extremists attacked the stall of the publisher Sabyasachi at Bangladesh’s book fair. Their “crime” was publishing my book. The book fair authorities and the police from the local station ordered the removal of my book. Even after it was removed, the… pic.twitter.com/ypddpQysiu
— taslima nasreen (@taslimanasreen) February 10, 2025
“The book fair authorities and the police from the local station ordered the removal of my book. Even after it was removed, the extremists attacked, vandalized the stall, and shut it down,” she added.
“The government is supporting these extremists, and jihadist activities are spreading across the country,” Nasreen said.