Humanity personified
Local Jharna Begum, in the photo on the right of this page, and members of the press rush to the policeman's aid. Photo: Star/Focus Bangla
Everyone was running helter-skelter for their lives, panicked by the brutality Shibir men had just inflicted on the police. But a woman braved it all and went to a wounded police officer's rescue.
The mother in Jharna Begum rose in empathy when she saw Jahangir Alam, in-charge of Upashahar police camp, lying on the road, bleeding copiously.
Without shuddering much at the scene, she first tried to stop the bleeding from his head.
She covered with her scarf the wounds of the policeman who had savagely been beaten up by Shibir activists at Shalbagan in the city.
The situation was more frightening as she found no one around who could come forward with a helping hand.
She took care of Jahangir as much as she could, and later, as two youths joined her, she managed to take him to Rajshahi Medical College Hospital.
Jharna, the 25-year-old mother of a son and a daughter, told The Daily Star it was all too natural that humans would stand by humans in times of danger. “I did it for the sake of humanity,” she said, adding that she had earlier as well stood by people in danger.
Mentioning the grievous injuries Jahangir had suffered, she said, “Only those with a ruthless lack of conscience can do such heinous acts.”
She asked, “How can they [the attackers] claim to be Muslims after hurting people so brutally? Is it their religion?”
Jharna waited at the hospital until Jahangir's relatives went there to take care of him.
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