MP Mahmuda Mitu says she has received death threats for seven days
Dr Mahmuda Mitu, a member of parliament from a reserved women's seat in the Jatiya Sangsad, has made a serious allegation that she has been receiving death threats directly by mobile phone and WhatsApp for the past seven days.
Dr Mahmuda Mitu, convener of Jatiya Nari Shakti and a member of the political council of the National Citizen Party (NCP), disclosed the matter in a long status posted on her verified Facebook account on Friday evening (November 13). In the same post, she also expressed strong anger over insulting behaviour towards coordinators and leaders of the July movement, referring to the background of an unwelcome incident at a recent sitting of the Jatiya Sangsad.
Writing about her own insecurity in the Facebook post, Dr Mahmuda Mitu said she has been receiving death threats by phone and WhatsApp for the past seven days, and that she had faced such threats before as well. But she expressed fear that even after bringing the matter forward, attempts might be made to play it down, as happened in the past with the Nusrat case. Quoting a remark by Hadi, she said with anger that until a bullet hits their neck or head, the matter will not touch anyone.
Explaining why she became emotional and agitated at yesterday's sitting of the Jatiya Sangsad, the MP wrote that she had become intensely emotional in parliament yesterday and at one point lost her temper.
Reminding readers of the foundation of the current parliament, she said today's parliament stands on the blood of hundreds of martyrs, the sacrifices of countless injured people, and the self-sacrifice of July mass uprising coordinators such as Hannan Masud and one-point-demand announcer Nahid Islam. Yet, she alleged, unable to match them in argument, people inside parliament itself address them with demeaning familiarity and insult them severely by calling them 'beyadob' (ill-mannered). She strongly criticised this culture of labelling anyone 'beyadob' whenever they cannot be out-argued.
Describing that heated situation in parliament, Mahmuda Mitu further wrote that when Hannan Masud was repeatedly being told 'sit, sit' and called 'beyadob', she could not restrain herself and raised her voice in protest. She noted that only they are the ones facing such dreadful situations as death threats and arson attacks on their homes.
She also wrote that those who always move through politics by taking convenient positions or making compromises will never understand how much courage it takes to do politics on the streets and in parliament while keeping one's parents, children and personal safety in extreme uncertainty.
