Police high officials hold meeting with journos

Following a massive social media outcry over a Bangladesh Police Service Association (BPSC) statement condemning the 'media smear campaign,' police high officials held a meeting with journalist leaders yesterday (23 June).

Dhaka Metropolitan Police (DMP) Commissioner Md Habibur Rahman convened the meeting at DMP Headquarters in the capital, bringing together leaders from the Bangladesh Federal Union of Journalists (BFUJ) and Dhaka Union of Journalists (DUJ).

This meeting followed several statements condemning the BPSC's stance.

Previously, the Bangladesh Police Service Association issued a strong statement denouncing what it described as a smear campaign by certain media outlets against current and former police members. The association asserted that these reports were exaggerated, partial, and intentionally misleading.

The statement comes amid the Anti-Corruption Commission's (ACC) investigation into the assets of former inspector general of Police (IGP) Benazir Ahmed and his family, following a number of media reports on allegations against him of accumulating illegal wealth. 

There were also media reports recently on allegations of graft against ex-Dhaka Metropolitan Police (DMP) Commissioner Asaduzzaman Mia. 

The Business Standard reached out today (24 June) to two top DMP officials who attended the meeting, but both declined to comment on the discussion.

Unwilling to be named, another DMP official who attended the meeting said an unwanted situation had arisen due to the exchange of statements between the police and journalists.

"Journalists are not enemies of the police, but we expect objective and impartial journalism. An untoward situation has been created after the police statement was issued," he said. 

"However, the DMP high-ups sat and talked to the journalist leaders, and both parties concluded that some of the words in the police statement weren't appropriate," the DMP official added.

Deep Azad, general secretary of BFUJ, said, "We have said that professional journalists have never reported falsehoods or biased stories, nor will they. Just as there are some corrupt officers in the police force, there are also many honest and dedicated officers.

"If any news published in the mainstream media contains incorrect information, the concerned media house or union can be informed. However, you cannot broadly question the news industry," he added.

Sohel Haider Chowdhury, president of the Dhaka Union of Journalists, said, "There was no discussion on whether the statement was correct or wrong. However, the journalist leaders mentioned that the prime minister herself has declared zero tolerance against corruption. 

"The pen will continue to fight against corruption. From the police's side, it was stated that the police are also vocal against corruption, and if any member is involved in corruption, the police internally take action against them," he added.

"They have no objection to the news, but the news should be complete and objective," Sohed added.