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Three organizations, including anti-discrimination student movement, face questions over extortion under the guise of 'coordinator'


There is a stir over the incident of a former MP demanding a sum of Tk 50 lakh from the house of a coordinator in Gulshan, the capital of Bangladesh, Dhaka. In the face of criticism, all committees except the central committee of the Anti-Discrimination Student Movement have been suspended.

Although the five people arrested by the police in that incident have been expelled from the Anti-Discrimination Student Movement and the Democratic Student Parliament, various allegations of extortion using these platforms of the July Movement are coming into discussion again.

Since August last year, many who were active in the movement to overthrow the Sheikh Hasina government have been facing various allegations including showing off power, extortion, obtaining benefits from businessmen, and lobbying in the secretariat.

It is alleged that allegations of extortion from various levels of leaders of the ousted Awami League have become acute across the country, especially in Dhaka.

These allegations are being made against many people involved in the anti-discrimination student movement and the Democratic Student Parliament, which emerged from the anti-Sheikh Hasina movement, in addition to the new political party NCP.

The leaders of the three organizations told News Feed Bangla that they are aware of these allegations and have demanded action against the accused as soon as they receive the allegations. They claim that a group of opportunistic individuals are committing these misdeeds by crowding into the organizations.

Social crime expert and Dhaka University teacher Dr. Touhidul Haque says that the trend of creating mobs using the 'coordinator's identity' to extort money has increased due to the lack of any visible exemplary action. According to him, these identities are being used to extort money.

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