It all happened at Binodpur Ramkumar High School at Panchasar, one of the century-old schools in Munshiganj, historically known as Bikrampur. A teacher landed in jail after discussing the distinction between science and religion with students, an episode that shocked the teaching community and beyond and sparked protests on social media, reports bdnews24.com.
The arrest of Hriday Chandra Mondal, who was teaching mathematics and science in the school for the past 21 years, was described as “unprecedented” and “unacceptable” by Mir Nasir Uddin Uzzal, a former president of Munshiganj Press Club.
“It’s a huge setback to the expansion of scientific education,” Uzzal said, demanding a proper investigation into the incident and justice for Hriday.
Tapan Sarker, a childhood friend of Hriday, said they studied at Kuchiamora High School in Munshiganj’s Sirajdikhan together. Hriday loved science and completed his honours and master's from Jagannath University. Tapan never heard Hriday speaking ill of religion. The teacher used to carefully avoid these controversies.
“Talking about religion, politics and marriage is completely forbidden in my room,” reads a notice on a wall of Hriday’s study where he used to teach students privately.
Yet he is now behind bars -- something Hriday’s friends and family are struggling to come to terms with. He wrote math formulas on the door and posted newspaper clippings of Nelson Mandela and APJ Abdul Kalam’s death near his table. Posters containing the periodic table and the photo of a skeleton also appear on the walls.
Now the family, friends and some locals are yet to grasp how protests started against Hriday two days after the students complained to the headmaster about his views, why he was arrested and subsequently denied bail.
Munshiganj is the birthplace of many notable people, such as scientist Sir Jagadish Chandra Bose, religious leader Atish Dipankar, writers Humayun Azad and Manik Bandopadhyay, and politicians Deshbandhu Chittaranjan Das and Sarojini Naidu.
Many of the schools were established over 100 years ago. Binodpur Ramkumar High School at Panchasar in Sadar Upazila is one of the century-old schools, where Hriday used to teach.
HOW DID IT HAPPEN?
Students of class 10 said Hriday stood in for a Bangla teacher who was absent on Mar 20. Hriday started to discuss science and at one stage a student brought up the topic of religion, claiming that religion is the origin of science. One of the students gave his mobile phone to another and asked the latter to record the conversation.
The student who held the phone said he had done it at his classmate’s advice and they thought they would complain to the headmaster and use the audio as evidence.
The student did not go to school on Mar 21, but he heard that his classmates filed a written complaint on that day.
The next day he saw some people enter the school compound and started shouting slogans demanding punishment for Hriday. “They were all unknown outsiders.”
After the end of classes, he saw some students joining the demonstration.
Moniruzzaman Sharif, a member of the school’s governing body, said he came to the school upon being informed by the headmaster about the protests.
“Some people and students were shouting slogans and one of the students was carrying a garland of shoes. They were searching for teacher Hriday Mondal to insult him,” Sharif said.
He came to know later that at least 10 students of class 10 played a key role in the demonstration.
The situation got “out of control” as the demonstrators demanded the resignation of the headmaster, he said. Some students asked those without uniforms to leave the compound through the school’s loudspeaker.
Mamun Mia, a former member of the committee and an incumbent member of Panchasar Union Council, was at his rice shop next to the school during the demonstration. He said all the demonstrators were young and those without uniforms appeared to be friends of the students.
“I tried to stop them but failed. Later I asked the headmaster to call the police. The protests ended after police came and picked up Hriday Sir.”
Hriday’s wife Babita Howlader, who works as a nurse at a hospital in Dhaka, was at her workplace. Hriday was with their minor son and daughter at home. The teacher was preparing to go to school.
“My son called me and said many people from the school were kicking at our door and hitting it with sticks. I heard about the demonstration later.”
Babita said the headmaster told the students that he would ask Hriday for an explanation within three days after they filed the complaint.
“He [the headmaster] said he would take steps after getting the explanation, but they [students] did not listen to him. They distributed it [the audio] among locals at mosques. They brought the crowd and rang the bell. When the students came out thinking that classes ended, they started a procession. Later police came and took him [Hriday] away from home.”
INCITATION, INSECURITY
Babita believes some people instigated the demonstration after inciting the students to record and spread the audio.
“My husband has been framed in a planned way. Some influential people in the school have done it by provoking the children,” she said during a demonstration in Dhaka’s Shahbagh on Saturday.
“My husband has been teaching in the school for 21 years. He didn’t belittle religion. He just said: ‘religion is a matter of faith, while science looks at the evidence’. He did nothing to insult the religion.”
A sense of insecurity came over the family in Munshiganj. “I always feel threatened now. All the Hindus are in danger now. After his [Hriday’s] arrest, we're facing insults on the streets. We're being socially humiliated. We're facing discrimination.”
Many people, even the police, asked the family to leave their home at the teachers’ quarters next to the school, she said.
“Where can I go? My son is in class five. Other students call him ‘the son of an accused’ when he goes to school. The teachers asked my boy not to go to school for some days. We are homebound now. My brother has come and he is doing shopping for us.”
No one from the school contacted the family after the incident. “Everyone is behaving like my husband is a murder suspect.
“But he never said the things written in the case. I met him in jail. He asked me not to be afraid and nothing would happen to him. He is the victim of a conspiracy.”
WHY LAWSUIT?
According to local leaders of the Hindu Buddhist Christian Unity Council, the incident enraged a group of people as the situation turned sour.
They asked the local administration to keep the angry mob away from Hriday, and he was escorted to the police station.
The council member called on the police to file a bailable case on Hriday, but they proceeded to include non-bailable charges in the case.
Hriday’s lawyer Ajay Kumar Chakrabarty, also the district president of the council, said: “People created confusion surrounding the incident and those who incited the events did the rest. Later the administration came and rescued [Hriday] and prevented him from being harassed anymore.”
MP UNHAPPY WITH POLICE’S ROLE
Local MP Mrinal Kanti Das feels the police did not help to improve the events that followed.
“I think the police provoked the people, their inactivity caused people to get really angry.”
Claiming that the police came up with the case dossier, “If a school teacher does something wrong, the headmaster is always there. He could be the plaintiff. How can the police write the FIR of the case, how could they arrest him?”
“The electrician has no idea what’s written in the case. How could the police get his signature? Who’ll answer that?”
“The police or his family told me nothing about it. I came to know about it from the locals and those who witnessed the incident. I am shocked, ashamed, hurt and angry over the steps authorities or the police have taken,” Mrinal said.
On whether he stands beside Hriday’s family, Mrinal said, “Thousands of people will be by the family’s side, even if a lowly, coward and escapist MP can’t. Hundreds of thousands of non-communal people in the country will stand by the family’s side.”
“I know the whole thing - he is a victim of a conspiracy. I don’t want to say anymore.”
KEEPING THINGS UNDER CONTROL
On the scrutiny of the police’s role in the matter, Munshiganj SP Abdul Momen said, “We tried our best to keep it under control.”
“Can you imagine what would’ve happened if the police had not arrived there immediately?”
“It was tough to rescue [Hriday] from there. They even tried to snatch him from the police. I don’t understand how the police are at fault here.”
SP Momen pointed out that the decisions law-enforcers took over the past two weeks led to the situation calming down now.”
“The angry people could’ve caused something undesirable, like the death of an individual. The police tried to calm tension so it doesn’t spread across the country.”
On the MP’s displeasure about the plaintiff of the case, he said, “It all comes after he was rescued. You tell me - do the police decide who the plaintiff will be, whether the headmaster, or the assistant headmaster, or an official? Who decides that?”
“As soon as we heard about the incident, we made our move. There was no delay.”
WHAT POLICE ARE DOING NOW
Members of the district police were very active during Friday prayers that followed as some of them even delivered statements in mosques on the incident.
Hriday’s wife Babita Howlader said the presence of police personnel around their home helped them fend off insecurity after the incident and there were no attacks.
Sub-inspector Mizanur Rahman, the investigation officer of the case, paid Babita a visit on Friday afternoon to reassure her.
“We are investigating. The police are working to keep things calm both in uniform and in plain clothes. We are listening in on what’s is being discussed at the mosques and marketplaces.”