Hundreds of students from Bangladesh University of Engineering and Technology (BUET) staged a protest march yesterday (24 February) at night following reports that Muntasir Al Jemi, a death row convict in the Abrar Fahad murder case, had escaped from prison.
The protest began at 11pm from the BUET Shaheed Minar and moved through various university halls before concluding at Raju Sculpture in Dhaka University around midnight, where the students held a press conference.
In a written statement, BUET students Abu Obaida Mayaz and Arafat Saqib condemned the escape, calling it “a betrayal of justice” and “a disgrace to Bangladesh’s legal system.” They also demanded immediate action from the government to capture Jemi and hold those responsible for his escape accountable.
Speaking after the student press conference, Abrar Fahad’s younger brother, Abrar Faiyaz, criticised the authorities, stating, “The state is responsible for my brother’s killer escaping, and the government cannot avoid this accountability.”
The protests erupted after Faiyaz posted about Jemi’s escape on Facebook, bringing the issue to public attention.