Momtaz Begum, mother of Nahid Islam, one of the five coordinators of the
Quota Reform Movement taken into custody by the Detective Branch over the weekend, has rejected the notion that her son and his fellow movement leaders were picked up and taken into custody for the sake of their own safety, as police and the government have been insisting.
She demanded her son be returned to his family, while talking to reporters near the DB headquarters in the city's Minto Road on Sunday afternoon.
Earlier, she and other parents came to meet their children at the
DB office, but were not allowed. Later they spoke to the media.
Momtaz Begum said that they (she and her fellow guardians) do not believe their sons were brought to DB office "for their own safety," as the detectives have not said anything like that, or indeed anything at all, to them after they went there.
"I want my son to be returned to us. We want every child to be returned to their respective parents," she said.
"How can someone be safer at police custody than with his family? DB says they are keeping our children for security reasons. Children are safe with their parents. What security does the DB office have?" Nahid's mother told reporters present there.
She noted that earlier Nahid was once picked up from a friend's house and tortured. Now while receiving treatment for those injuries, he was picked up again along with two others.
"We could not even meet Nahid at the DB office," she added. She also said that all the children have to be returned to their families as they are very concerned.
Replying to a question, Nahid's mother said although the detectives urged them not to worry, she finds that 'impossible' with her son in DB custody.
"My son is safe with me. Not at the DB office," Momtaz said.
Nahid's recent experiences with law enforcement agencies would not inspire confidence. It is barely a week since Nahid was picked up by plainclothes officers from a friend's house and kept at an undisclosed location for 24 hours or so during which he was brutally tortured, losing consciousness at one point.
When he regained consciousness, he found himself on a roadside from where he was able to get a ride home. He was then admitted to hospital. Nahid's left thigh, two arms and shoulder had bruises where blood clots had formed, on that occasion.
"My question is why would they (DB) bring Nahid here? His physical condition was not good when he was taken out of the hospital," Momtaz pointed out.
TF
