Fifteen-year-old Md. Imran Hossain was supposed to be studying with books and pens ahead of his upcoming annual examinations. Instead, the eighth-grade student from Cumilla’s Nangalkot now finds himself behind the bars of a prison cell—arrested under Bangladesh’s Special Powers Act and the Anti-Terrorism Act.
According to documents obtained by this newsroom, Imran is a regular student of Class Eight at Dhalua Bahumukhi High School (Roll No. 48). School records (Receipt No. 15052) confirm that he paid his tuition and session fees—amounting to Tk 1,500—on 11 November 2025.
Despite this, Nangalkot police arrested him on 17 November and filed Case No. 12/166 accusing him of anti-state activities.
In the police FIR, Imran—who is only 15—was labeled as a member of the Awami League’s student wing, the Bangladesh Chhatra League. Police alleged that he chanted anti-government slogans, blocked roads, and was involved in crude-bomb explosions.
However, Imran’s family strongly denies the allegations.
“Imran is just a child,” said a family member in tears. “He knows nothing about politics. His exams were about to start in a few days. They have destroyed his education and future by falsely implicating him.”
Legal experts argue that police actions directly violate Bangladesh’s Children Act 2013, which classifies anyone under 18 as a child and mandates special protections during arrest and trial. Yet Imran was treated “like an adult criminal” and produced before court without any juvenile safeguards, lawyers say.
The incident has provoked widespread anger across the district and on social media. Community members and rights activists question how an eighth-grade student preparing for exams could be framed as a dangerous offender.
Local residents have demanded an impartial investigation and immediate release of the schoolboy so he can sit for his examinations.
