Dhaka: Legal proceedings were initiated against senior journalist Anis Alamgir after he was taken into custody by the Detective Branch (DB) of the Dhaka Metropolitan Police (DMP) for questioning relating to “specific issues”, local media reported Monday.
This came as yet another case of escalating repression of press freedom in Bangladesh under the Muhammad Yunus-led interim government.
Without disclosing the reason, DMP Additional Commissioner (DB), Shafikul Islam, confirmed the development late Sunday night and said that Anis Alamgir “failed to respond satisfactorily to certain issues during questioning”, leading to the initiation of legal action.
He added that Alamgir was asked to remain at the DB office overnight as the legal process is underway, leading Bangladeshi daily Dhaka Tribune reported.
According to local media reports, Alamgir was picked up from the capital’s Dhanmondi area by the DMP Sunday evening.
Speaking to the country’s leading Bengali daily Prothom Alo, Anis Alamgir said, “I was picked up from a gym in the Dhanmondi area. The DB said their chief would talk to me.” However, the chief did not speak to him.
Alamgir has worked with several media outlets, including the Bangladeshi daily Ajker Kagoj, and has recently been in the spotlight for his remarks on television talk shows.
This latest incident comes against the backdrop of growing attacks on journalists in Bangladesh, sparking grave concerns over freedom of the press.
Last week, another journalist was assaulted while covering a story on the shooting of Sharif Osman Bin Hadi, spokesperson of a radical activist platform, Inqilab Mancha.
The incident occurred December 12 afternoon as Risan was collecting information at Dhaka Medical College Hospital (DMCH) regarding Hadi’s shooting, when the student-turned-politician’s supporters attacked him, local media reported.
Earlier in July, a group of 88 expatriate journalists, writers, researchers, cultural and rights activists expressed serious concerns over the “continued torture of journalists and suppression of free speech” in Bangladesh under the Yunus-led interim government.
Earlier this month, several prominent international experts voiced serious concerns over the deteriorating human rights situation in Bangladesh, citing a rise in abuses and the use of “false and fabricated cases” to pursue a political vendetta.
Canada-based think tank organisation ‘Global Centre for Democratic Governance (GCDG)’ organised a virtual international seminar titled ‘Bangladesh in Crisis: Human Rights, Justice, and the Future of Democracy’ during which the experts shared their assessments.
Speaking at the event, Editor of Public Radio of Switzerland, Charlotte Jacquemert, highlighted that 195 criminal cases were filed against journalists between August 2024 and July 2025 under the Yunus-led interim government, a 550 per cent increase compared to the previous year.
“She also expressed concern that 878 journalists were subjected to various forms of harassment during the same period. Jacquemart demanded the withdrawal of all fabricated cases filed against journalists and the immediate release of those arrested,” read a press statement issued by GCDG following the seminar.
IANS
