Viral Audio Leads to Sedition Charges for Former Police Officer
Rakibul Hasan, who previously served as the officer-in-charge (OC) of Dhaka Cantonment police station, has been arrested. He now faces charges in a sedition case. His arrest happened after an audio recording of his comments went viral on social media.
On Thursday evening, the Detective Branch (DB) of Dhaka Metropolitan Police presented Mr. Hasan before the Chief Metropolitan Magistrate Court in Dhaka. Police asked the court for a seven-day period to question him further. Additional Commissioner Md. Shafiqul Islam of the DB confirmed that police filed the sedition case against Mr. Hasan at Cantonment police station earlier that day.
The audio recording of Mr. Hasan’s conversation first appeared online on the night of September 16. At that time, he was still the OC of Cantonment police station. In the audio, he made comments about Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina’s return to the country. He also spoke about the ability of the police force.
Mr. Hasan also talked about the political positions of senior police officers. He claimed there were various problems, including money being exchanged for postings to different police jobs. He said a driver of a senior police officer was arranging these postings.
The audio clip caused a strong reaction. Rakibul Hasan was removed from his post at Cantonment police station the very next day. Citing “administrative reasons,” he was moved to the Central Reserve Office of the DMP headquarters. The Dhaka Metropolitan Police (DMP) then formed a three-member committee to investigate him.
For about a week, no one knew where Mr. Hasan was. DB chief Shafiqul Islam had first denied that Mr. Hasan was taken to the DB office. However, Mr. Islam later confirmed that Rakibul Hasan had been arrested in the sedition case.
The investigation committee submitted its report to the DMP commissioner on Wednesday. Following this report, the decision to file a sedition case against Rakibul Hasan was made. The police press release stated that he was arrested for spreading anti-state and provocative statements on social media.
Police are seeking to question Mr. Hasan further. They want to understand the full conspiracy behind the incident. They believe a seven-day remand period is needed for a proper investigation.
