Asif Nazrul Alleges Acute Cyberbullying
Law Adviser Professor Dr Asif Nazrul has claimed that he has been the most targeted victim of cyberbullying in Bangladesh over the past 16 months.
Raising the issue at a policy dialogue titled “Political Parties, Human Rights and Freedom of Expression”, he posed a question to the audience before answering it himself: “Who has faced the most cyberbullying in Bangladesh in the last 16 months? It’s me—and I say this as a challenge.” He said that within just the first four months, four dedicated videos were produced solely to target him.
The dialogue was organised by the Centre for Governance Studies (CGS) on Saturday afternoon (January 10) at the CIRDAP Auditorium in the capital.
Expressing frustration, Dr Nazrul said he had been branded a “Pakistani agent” for 15 years, only to be labelled an “Indian agent” overnight. He added that false claims were spread alleging he owned property in the United States and that his family had already moved there. “I publicly challenged these claims six months ago. No one has been able to prove any of them,” he said, questioning whether those spreading such falsehoods had ever been held accountable.
Calling the campaign against him an extreme form of cyberbullying, he said, “For someone whose greatest pride in life is integrity, such coordinated attacks are deeply damaging.”
Addressing criticism over bail granted in July-related cases, Dr Nazrul asserted that he had no role in granting bail. He explained that around 90 percent of such bails were granted by the High Court, and if any mistakes occurred, responsibility lay with the judges concerned—not the law adviser. He noted that many judges were appointed during what he described as the “fascist Awami League era”, and their accountability fell under the Supreme Judicial Council, led by the Chief Justice.
“Can I remove a High Court judge? Can I take action against a judge for granting bail?” he asked, adding that all blame was being unfairly placed on him instead of those actually responsible.
Dr Nazrul further alleged that the attacks against him were driven by political agendas and monetisation motives. “Insulting Asif Nazrul brings views, business, and monetisation. And weakening me makes it easier to implement a particular political agenda,” he said.
The policy dialogue was moderated by CGS President Zillur Rahman. Other speakers included Iftekharuzzaman, Executive Director of Transparency International Bangladesh (TIB); Sara Hossain, Honorary Executive Director of BLAST; Professor Abdul Latif Masum of Jahangirnagar University; Bazlur Rashid Firoz, General Secretary of the Socialist Party of Bangladesh (BASAD); Didar Bhuiyan, Joint General Secretary of the Bangladesh State Reform Movement; and Md Mukhtadir Rashid, Bangladesh representative of Irabati, among others.
DBTech/DR/EK/OR
