Editorial
Teachers on remand again
Deal with them with care and respect
The news that the two senior teachers of Dhaka University, Prof. Anwar Hossain and Prof. Harun-or-Rashid, both of whom are already in custody, have been shown arrested in yet another case and placed on remand for four more days is disconcerting. We are further concerned to learn that the teachers have told before the Metropolitan Magistrate Court that they have been subjected to mental torture during interrogation following their arrest.
We believe that no one is above the law, yet we feel such treatment of respected teachers of the country's highest seat of learning should have been avoided. They are known to have good track record as teachers, administrators and academic counsellors, therefore the method of interrogation in their case should be different from that followed in the case of ordinary criminals. In this respect, the authorities concerned may also consider the option of questioning them at the jail gate, as there is such a provision in our legal system.
It needs to be said that when the law enforcing authorities have been successful in defusing the situation within a short time and without any loss of life, detaining the Dhaka University teachers for such a long time would smudge their achievement to some extent. Furthermore, the public apology that has come from Prof. Anwar Hossain for the unfortunate incident on the campus should be viewed with compassion and seized as an opportunity to find ways to forget and forgive and work jointly towards establishing peace. In the melee, we must not be forgetful of the loss of academic hours of the general students.
Teachers are kept in very high esteem in every society, therefore, great attempts should be made to ensure that no action against them is interpreted as harassment or intimidation. In the same breath we would like to say that teachers are also expected to perform their responsibilities of maintaining healthy environment on the campus to the best of their abilities. In this connection we must point out that during the vandalism no loud voice from the teachers could be heard urging students to desist from such acts.
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