Dhaka, August 18, 2025
Several right-wing Islamist organizations have issued statements backing Dr. Mohammad Sorowar Hossain and Asif Mahtab Utsha—the two complainants in the case tied to a satirical cartoon posted by transgender student Sahara (Safwan) Chowdhury of Sylhet Metropolitan University (SMU). LGBTIQ-rights advocates say the messaging and mobilization reflected in these statements risk normalizing organized pressure campaigns against sexual and gender minorities and further shrinking campus safety and free expression.
According to the documents reviewed, sign-ons and statements of support came from (among others) Bangladesh Islami Chhatra Majlis, Bangladesh Khelafat Chhatra Majlis, East West University Islamic Community (EWUIC), and a networked page identified as Intifada Bangladesh. The materials amplify the complainants’ narrative, characterize the caricature as beyond acceptable expression, and call for punitive action, while reproducing inflammatory social-media commentary around the dispute.
The new round of endorsements follows earlier developments in the case: Sorowar filed a General Diary (GD) at Bhatara Police Station on 12 August, and Utsha filed a second GD at Uttara Paschim Police Station on 14 August, after which SMU announced Sahara’s permanent expulsion—a move condemned by multiple left-leaning parties and student groups, and by a collective of 162 citizens who urged her reinstatement with security. Rights monitors argue that the latest pro-complainant statements consolidate street- and campus-level support for using legal and administrative levers to silence dissenting or minority voices.
LGBTIQ-rights defenders warn that:
Publicly aligned campus and political networks can translate statements into on-the-ground intimidation, including doxxing, threats, and mob pressure on administrators;
Framing satire or advocacy as criminal or “anti-values” chills academic freedom and deters vulnerable students from seeking help;
Universities should adopt clear, gender-sensitive due-process protocols to prevent disciplinary actions under coercive, mob-driven conditions.
