‘Sniper’ comment about PM’s bus: Rajshahi man lands in jail following police plea

A man has landed in jail following a police plea in a case over his Facebook comment suggesting that a sniper was missing when Prime Minister Tarique Rahman was travelling in a bus during his visit to Rajshahi.

Dhaka Metropolitan Magistrate Mehedi Hasan passed the order today (23 October), confirmed Sub-Inspector Md Shah Alam of the police’s prosecution department.

The case investigation officer, Sub-Inspector Md Yasin Paik of the of the Detective Branch’s (DB) Organised Crime Investigation Team under the Cyber and Special Crime (North) Division, produced the accused before the court and sought his detention in jail.

Abu Bokor Siddique, 22, was arrested from the Gholharia Dakshinpara area of Parila Union under Rajshahi’s Paba Upazila yesterday (22 October), a day after he made the comment in question on a Facebook post.

Last Tuesday (20 October), PM Tarique arrived at Shah Makhdum Airport in Rajshahi around 3pm. He then travelled from the airport into the city on a bus from Rajshahi University of Engineering and Technology (Ruet). Large crowds on both sides of the road welcomed him while the PM waved back from the moving bus.

Meanwhile, a post was published on a Facebook page named “The Beauty of Rajshahi” with photographs of the Ruet bus carrying Tarique and it questioned its use instead of the red-and-green bulletproof bus the PM generally uses for travel.

In the comments section of that post, Siddique wrote in Bangla, “Alas! It was a huge opportunity. Only a sniper was missing.” After screenshots of the comment went viral, law enforcement agencies started looking into him.

After he was arrested and brought to Dhaka yesterday, Sub-Inspector Md Manik Hossain of the DB’s Cyber and Special Crime (North) Division filed the case under the Anti-Terrorism Act at Ramna Police Station in Dhaka.

Siddique’s father Md Ainal Haque was also detained during the operation but was later released after the initial investigation found no involvement on his part.

Police seized Siddique’s mobile phone after his arrest. According to the police petition, an examination of the device reportedly revealed information about objectionable comments posted on various Facebook pages and groups.

The investigation officer said the accused needed to be questioned in custody to uncover the full circumstances of the case and identify two to three other unnamed suspects mentioned in the first information report.

The petition also expressed concern that the accused could destroy evidence or go into hiding if released on bail.