Main planners of vandalism at Muktadir’s studio arrested with 3 others

Police have arrested 4 including the main planners on connection of content creator Salman Muqtadir’s studio vandalism in the ECB square of Dhaka.

Police said the attack incident took place due to land disputes.

Cantonment Police Station Officer-in-Charge (OC) Mohammad Gias Uddin confirmed the information on Sunday (September 27) afternoon.

The arrested are Shahriar, the mastermind of the attack, Md Mamun of Bhashantek slum and Aslam and Munna of Majumdar Mor area.

The police said Salman Muqtadir had rented a floor from New Guinea Properties Limited and started Brownfish Studio there and he alleged that a group of people came in two trucks late Saturday night and attacked and vandalized the studio.

At around 1:45am, Salman Muqtadir appeared in a live broadcast on the Brownfish Studio Facebook page saying that the entire studio had been destroyed during the attack and later suspected that the attackers’ main target was probably the owner of the building and he also expressed suspicion that the incident might have been related to a demand for extortion.

Cantonment Police Station OC Mohammad Gias Uddin said that New Guinea Properties constructed a gate on the land preventing others from using the passage and according to preliminary information, people from the opposing side went there after growing angry over the difficulties in accessing the area.

He said that the mastermind behind the attack had been arrested and that police operations were underway to arrest the others involved.

Meanwhile, speaking to journalists at the Secretariat on Sunday afternoon Home Minister Salahuddin Ahmed said that the two sides had a dispute over around 35 kathas of land. One side is New Guinea Properties Limited and the other is a retired senior military officer.

According to the home minister, preliminary reports said that a group of people allegedly tried to occupy the land under cover of darkness on behalf of the retired officer.

New Guinea Properties Limited has reportedly filed a case with Cantonment Police Station over the incident.