Torture of IU Student: Ensure security so students can pursue dreams

"The cruelty broke my heart but not my dreams," said Phulpori Khatun, the Islamic University student who was tortured allegedly by two BCL leaders on February 12.

In an interview with The Daily Star yesterday, she said she intends to attend every class and won't give up her education.

On February 14, Phulpori filed a complaint with the IU authorities accusing BCL leaders Sanjida and Tabassum of torturing and humiliating her for hours on the night of February 12 for staying at a student dormitory without informing them.

"I was scared and saddened, and I don't want it to happen to any other student," said the first-year student of the finance and banking department.

Fearing further torture, she returned to her village home in Shibpur under Pabna's Atgharia upazila after the incident.  "That was the most shocking day of my life. I will never forget this," she said.

Around 12:30pm yesterday, Phulpori left for the university to appear before a committee, which was formed to investigate the complaint.

Her proud van-puller father Ataur Rahman, who was accompanying her to Kushtia, said, "I never imagined my daughter would face such inhuman torture. After the incident, we are worried about her safety."

Ataur said he devoted his life to educating his four children, adding that his first child completed her master's from Rajshahi University, and the second is a fourth-year student at Dhaka University.

"Phulpori is my third child while the fourth is a tenth grader," he said, adding that he spends the majority of his earning on their academic expenditure.

"Being an illiterate man, I know the pain of ignorance. So, I had the dream to educate my children," said Ataur.

Both the father and daughter demanded exemplary punishment to the culprits so that nobody dares torture any student on the campus in the future.

"When I went to the university and started attending classes earlier this month, that was the first step to fulfilling my dream," said Phulpori. 

"Unfortunately, I was humiliated and brutally tortured by the seniors on the campus and I was never prepared for this," she added.

"Now I strongly urge the university administration to take steps to prevent such incidents in the future. I want safety and security for me and all of us like me so that we can fulfil our dream."