RU Journalists Attacked, CCTV Footage Erased Allegedly

Severe unrest erupted across Rajshahi University (RU) following a targeted physical assault on working campus journalists and the subsequent deletion of critical CCTV video surveillance data. The incident triggered major concerns over the tampering of primary digital forensic evidence designed to identify the perpetrators.

Seeking to analyze footage to formally register the identities of the attackers, journalists demanded CCTV recordings from residential hall provost Professor Mahbubur Rahman. Following his refusal to release the feed, journalists retrieved the primary storage hard drive under fears of evidence tampering. Subsequent forensic inspection of the drive revealed that all recorded logs and video sequences from the exact timestamp of the assault had been wiped clean, prompting reporters to accuse the administration of deliberate evidence destruction.

In response to the violence and cover-up, the Rajshahi University Central Students' Union staged a protest human chain on Monday, October 5, 2026. Ashiqul Islam, President of the RU Press Club, stated that the provost initially stonewalled requests for the recording and that subsequent inspection confirmed the drive was wiped clean under the provost’s supervision to shield attackers. He demanded exemplary institutional and legal accountability for both the physical assailants and those responsible for destroying digital evidence.

Denying the tampering charges, Provost Mahbubur Rahman stated that ongoing infrastructure renovations had disconnected the camera power grid, preventing automatic local storage caching. Meanwhile, RU Pro-Vice Chancellor (Administration) Professor Dr. Abdul Alim assured that evidentiary assets are being preserved and that a formal investigation committee will process all physical and digital documentation.

Journalist Mir Kadir noted that independent video footage recorded by students and correspondents remains securely backed up, providing indisputable evidence to identify the offenders. Protesting media personnel cautioned that further escalated demonstrations will follow if decisive punitive measures are delayed.

According to campus sources, the attack took place on Sunday, October 4, 2026, while reporters were discharging their professional duties. University unit Chhatradal activists launched an unprovoked assault, leaving at least 10 journalists injured, four of them critically. Key assailants reportedly leading the violence included RU Chhatradal Vice-President Ahsan Habib, Joint General Secretary Hasibul Islam, Vice-President Shariful Islam, and Assistant Office Secretary Shahriar Alam. Among the critically injured journalists were Arif Uzzaman Korban of bdnews24.com, Zahidul Islam of Agamir Somoy, Noor Ahsan Mridul of The Daily Star, and Mainul Islam Raju of Dainik Samakal.

 //DBTech/MKR/SMP/DPO//