Journalist Shah Jamal Shishir Jailed in Political Case in Jashore

Journalist Shah Jamal Shishir has been sent to jail in a case filed on charges of tarnishing the image of the interim government and engaging in subversive activities in Jhikargacha, Jashore.

Shishir, son of Abu Taleb from Mirzapur village in Jhikargacha upazila, serves as the Jhikargacha correspondent for The Daily Kalbela and Samajer Kotha.

On Monday (July 7), he surrendered before the court and applied for bail. However, Senior District and Sessions Judge Sheikh Nazmul Alam rejected his bail plea and ordered his imprisonment.

According to court sources, on December 17 last year, Solaiman Hossain from Nawapara village filed a sabotage case at Jhikargacha Police Station. The case named 37 individuals, including Awami League leaders Selim Reza, Mostafa Anwar Pasha Jamal, Musa Mahmud, and Imamul Habib Jaglu, as accused.

Shishir was also listed as an accused in the same case.

The case also implicated three other journalists: Abul Kalam Azad of Dainik Kalyan, Abu Said Milan of Dainik Spandan, and Ekramul Haque Khokon of Dainik Nawapara.

According to the case details, all the accused are leaders and activists of the Awami League and the banned organization Chhatra League. They were allegedly involved in various conspiratorial activities to damage the interim government’s reputation. As part of these actions, on December 16 at around 7 PM, they reportedly sprayed red paint on a banner at the Jhikargacha upazila memorial monument, writing “Joy Bangla” to create panic among the public. When local leaders noticed the incident, they advised the plaintiff and his party members to remain vigilant. On December 17 at around 5 PM, while returning home after completing necessary tasks, the plaintiff spotted the accused. Later, accompanied by his acquaintances, he reached Joykrishnapur Jamtala intersection in Jhikargacha, where the accused targeted them and detonated two bomb-like objects. The police were informed, and bomb-like substances were subsequently seized.