A poetry recitation event marking the Amar Ekushey and International Mother Language Day was abruptly halted near the Chattogram鈥檚 Central Shaheed Minar area on Friday after objections were raised over a poem mentioning the country's founding president Sheikh Mujibur Rahman.聽
The incident took place at around 10:45am adjacent to the Central Shaheed Minar area and the opposite side of the Police Plaza under Kotwali police station in the city.
According to witnesses, the Chattogram Abritti Sammilan organised the annual poetry recitation programme, as in previous years. During the event, a performer recited the poem 鈥楨k Second-e Matro Char Foot鈥� by poet Rabiul Hossain. However, as soon as the word 鈥楤angabandhu鈥� was uttered, a group from the audience objected, forcing the organisers to apologise and terminate the event prematurely.
Speaking on the matter, Mishfaq Rasel of Noren Abritti Academy, one of the organizers, said, 鈥業 do not wish to comment much on the incident. We were unaware that the performer had chosen this poem. We also did not anticipate that someone would object to it. A few individuals, whom we know personally, created a disturbance. To avoid further issues, we ended the event with a song.鈥�
Local sources claimed that the disruption was led by MA Musa Babul, convener of the Jatiotabadi Samajik Sangskritik Sangstha (JASAS) Chattogram City Unit, and its member secretary Mamunur Rashid.
JASAS Chattogram City Unit member secretary Mamunur Rashid said, 鈥楾he poem referred to our chief adviser, Yunus, as a 鈥淩azakar鈥� and 鈥淥ld Vulture,鈥� while Sheikh Hasina was called 鈥淛anani鈥�. These lines angered the local people.鈥�
He further added, 鈥榃e were heading towards the Shaheed Minar to place floral tributes when people called us after seeing our banner. We intervened to protect the organizers from public outrage. In reality, they are allies of the Awami League.鈥�
Commenting on the matter, Kotwali police station officer-in-charge Abdul Karim said, 鈥榃e heard that an issue arose when the name of Sheikh Mujibur Rahman was mentioned during a recitation. Our mobile team was nearby, but the event had already been halted before they reached the location.鈥�
For nearly two decades, the Chattogram Abritti Sammilan has been organising poetry recitations and other cultural programmes under its banner, involving around 20 cultural organisations. This year鈥檚 programme commenced at 9:30 AM before it was abruptly stopped following the disruption.
