Monday, June 25, 2012

'We're victims, not attackers' ATN Bangla journalists Z I Mamun,Bangladesh


BANGLADESH NEWS

DHAKA:ATN Bangla journalists have claimed that they are not responsible for the scuffle that took place at a programme of journalist unions earlier in the day.

"We didn't attack ... We were attacked," Z I Mamun, Head of News of ATN Bangla, said at a media conference on Sunday evening.

"How sticks reached there?" he asked and added, "Press Club isn't a place to keep sticks."

The journalists of the TV station had organised the press conference to explain their role at the human chain programme in front of the Press Club, where the scuffle took place. Four unions of journalists had organised the human chain in protest against killing of fellow couple Sagar Sarowar and Meherun Runi.

"The incident was organised to change the course of investigation," Mamun, a colleague of slain ATN Bangla Senior Reporter Runi, said.

Some journalists of the TV station, including Mamun, reportedly attacked and assaulted Organising Secretary of a DUJ faction Jahangir Alam Prodhan when he sought announcement of programme to lay siege to ATN Bangla offices blaming the TV station's Chairman Mahfuzur Rahman for the killing of Sagar and Runi. This led to a scuffle.

Later, the journalists' unions announced to hold on Monday a rally in front of the press club demanding arrest of the killers of Sagar-Runi and the 'attack' on Prodhan.

Mamun said they were not responsible for the incident. "See the video footages. Take punitive steps against those responsible."

Maasranga TV News Editor Sagar and his wife Runi were killed in their Rajabazar flat on Feb 11.

The ATN Bangla chief on May 30 told a rally in London that the slain couple was 'victim of an extra-marital affair' and that he had a video footage and information on the matter.

His comments drew flak from various quarters and the journalist platforms demanded his arrest and grilling by law enforcers.

Rapid Action Battalion investigators quizzed Mahfuzur Rahman at his office on Jun 21 over the killing.

RAB also collected a CD and several other video footages from there.

Following severe criticism, Rahman had issued a statement defending his remarks claiming he had said 'a few things' from a deep pain within as the murder mystery of the journalist couple was not yet resolved. 

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