What TV doesn't, print can't; we deliver.
What TV doesn't, print can't; we deliver.
COX’S BAZAR — August 15, 2026: The Bangladesh Puja Udjapan Parishad, Cox’s Bazar District Branch, has expressed profound concern and outrage over threats allegedly issued against local leader and journalist Antar De Bishal, following his investigative reporting on the murder of ascetic Nayan Sadhu in Khurushkul.
The Parishad welcomed the arrest of a suspect nearly three months after the high-profile murder, expressing gratitude to the government and law-enforcement authorities for the development. At the same time, however, it warned that the investigation cannot end with a single arrest and that every person involved in the killing must be identified and brought to justice.
The organization’s strongest condemnation was directed at the intimidation of journalist Antar De Bishal.
According to a press statement issued on Friday, August 14, and signed by the Parishad’s Office Secretary, Sri Pritam Dhar, Bishal was subjected to verbal abuse, pressured to withdraw or retract his reporting, and threatened with fabricated criminal cases by individuals allegedly posing as administrative officials.
The Parishad said it was deeply disturbed that, despite considerable time having passed since the intimidation occurred, those responsible have reportedly neither been identified nor brought to justice.
Impersonating government officials to threaten a journalist is not a minor act of intimidation. It is an attack on the credibility of public institutions, the safety of the press, and the public’s right to know the truth.
The Parishad therefore demanded an immediate, impartial and transparent investigation to establish the identities of those behind the threats, determine their motives, and bring them before the law.
The organization stressed that journalism cannot function when reporters are forced to choose between telling the truth and protecting themselves from harassment, intimidation or fabricated criminal proceedings. When a journalist investigating a murder can be threatened into silence, the danger extends far beyond that individual.
It threatens the entire process through which the public learns the truth about murder, organized crime, corruption, institutional failures and other matters of grave public interest.
A journalist must not have to fear a false case simply for asking difficult questions. A reporter must not be silenced because his reporting makes powerful or influential people uncomfortable. And no one should be permitted to weaponize the identity of government officials as a tool of intimidation.
The Cox’s Bazar District Branch of the Bangladesh Puja Udjapan Parishad made its position unequivocal: any attempt to gag the press, intimidate journalists or obstruct legitimate investigative reporting is unacceptable.
Alongside its demand for a prompt and impartial investigation, the Parishad called upon the authorities to provide comprehensive security to journalist Antar De Bishal and ensure that he can continue performing his professional responsibilities without fear.
It further warned that failure to identify and prosecute those responsible for the threats would leave the organization with no option but to announce strong and sustained protest programmes.
The Parishad also called for the murder investigation into Nayan Sadhu’s killing to be pursued to its logical conclusion. Law-enforcement authorities, it said, must uncover the full conspiracy behind the murder, identify and arrest all remaining accomplices, and ensure that those responsible face exemplary punishment under the law.
The arrest of a suspect may represent progress, but justice for Nayan Sadhu cannot mean stopping at the first arrest. Every link in the chain of the crime must be exposed, every accomplice identified, and every responsible individual held accountable.
At the same time, the Parishad urged the state and administration to create an environment in which journalists can investigate and report matters of public interest freely, independently and without intimidation.
The murder of a person demands justice. The intimidation of a journalist demands vigilance. When both occur in the same case, the responsibility of the authorities becomes even greater: uncover the truth, protect those who seek it, and ensure that neither violence nor fear is allowed to silence the public record.
