Recently, Islamist extremists formed a mob and attacked a freethinking publisher at the Amar Ekushey Book Fair in Bangladesh. Instead of taking action against the attackers, Dr. Yunus’s government shut down the publisher’s stall. Now, fundamentalists have targeted women’s freedom.
A stall distributing free sanitary napkins and diapers to women attending the book fair faced threats from an Islamist mob. Instead of controlling the mob, the Bangla Academy, which organizes the fair, ordered the closure of the stall. This decision has sparked intense discussions on social media.
The fair’s organizing committee claims the shutdown was not about sanitary napkins or diapers but due to a lack of approval. They stated that the stall was violating fair regulations by selling non-book-related products.
By Sunday afternoon, the stall near the open stage at Suhrawardy Udyan was seen closed.
Many Facebook users alleged that the fair’s authorities shut it down due to fear of an “Islamist group mob.”
Evidence supporting this claim emerged in a letter signed by Bangla Academy Director General Mohammad Azam, which went viral on social media. The letter states that “several Islamist groups” objected to the sale of sanitary napkins at the stall.
Fair organizers claim the letter was sent by the event management company to the sponsoring company, but they did not comment on the signature of the Bangla Academy chief.
The letter also mentioned replacing the stall’s products with other items, such as children’s educational materials, citing concerns about potential mob violence and the sponsor company’s business interests.
In the letter, Bangla Academy Director General Mohammad Azam stated:
“I am aware of the situation. Immediate action needs to be taken.”
When asked about this issue, Fair Organizing Committee Member-Secretary Sarker Amin told Bangladeshi media:
“According to the regulations, only books and food can be sold at the book fair.”
Bangla Academy’s Mohammad Azam added:
“This stall did not receive approval as per fair regulations, which is why it was shut down. It has nothing to do with sanitary napkins or diapers.”
However, when questioned about how the stall was set up in the first place, Azam explained:
*”We assign certain responsibilities to an event management company for infrastructure, including toilets. They are allowed to secure small sponsors for these services with fair committee approval.
For example, ‘Dettol’ is providing toilet cleaning services with approval. However, this stall was set up without informing the committee.”*
Rakib Hasan, Director and CEO of Dreamer Donkey Pvt. Ltd., the event management company for the fair, admitted that the stall was set up without approval.
“We gather sponsors from companies that support the fair’s infrastructure. The fair committee allocates space for us. Just like ‘Dettol’ is handling toilet cleaning, we placed this stall for sanitary napkins and diapers near the toilets,” Rakib said.
Regarding allegations that the stall violated fair regulations by selling sanitary napkins and diapers, Rakib clarified:
“They were distributing free sanitary napkins to women attending the fair. However, if someone wanted to buy, they were also selling.”
The closure of this stall, which aimed to provide an essential service for women, has sparked widespread criticism on Facebook. Many users argue that under Dr. Yunus’s authoritarian regime, Islamist fundamentalism is gaining strength across Bangladesh.