Home ›› 31 Jan 2022 ›› Show Biz
Protests flared up on the premises of Bangladesh Film Development Corporation as the leaders of 17 film organisations continued demonstrations for the second day to press home their three-point demand after they were denied access to the BFDC on the day of Chalachchitra Shilpi Samity election on Friday.
Earlier, on Saturday, leaders of the 17 film organisations announced a strike for an indefinite period and called for the removal of Nuzhat Yeasmin from the post of the corporation’s managing director.
Their three-point demands are—removal of Nuzhat Yeasmin, declaring chief election commissioner of Shilpi Samity polls Pirjada Harun persona non-grata, and holding future polls of artstes’ bodies under the management of FDC.
On Sunday, the protesters of the 17 organisations got mobilised in front of the main entrance of the BFDC since morning. Afterwards, they staged a rally and demanded the resignation of Nuzhat Yeasmin saying that it was ‘humiliating’ for them to have been denied access to FDC on the polling day.
Film directors Sohanur Rahman Sohan, Delwar Jahan Jhantu, Shaheen Sumon and producer-director Mohammad Iqbal, among others, led the protest on Sunday.
Sohanur Rahman Sohan, who executed his role as the appeal board chairman during this year’s Shilpi Samity polls, told reporters, “Our only allegation is that our directors, producers and technicians were not allowed to enter the FDC on the election day. But, earlier we asked her (Nuzhat Yeasmin) to allow entry for at least 200 people of us at the FDC through a selection process. If she did so, what would have been the problem to her and the election commissioner Pirjada Harun. It hurt us.”
“Her responsibility is to make sure a good atmosphere for the FDC and she failed to do so,” added Sohan.
Director Delwar Jahan Jhantu said, “I’ve never seen such corruption in FDC in my lifetime. This corruption makes us feel discouraged to make films. She (Nuzhat) is behind the corruption and moreover, she didn’t allow us to enter FDC on the election day”.
Later, the protesters burnt an effigy of Nuzhat Yeasmin on the premises of the FDC.
Nujhat, later at a press briefing on Sunday, said that there were efforts to control gathering at the FDC on the polling day in the context of the Covid-19 as per direction from the ministry.
Ilias Kanchan and Zayed Khan were elected president and general secretary respectively in Friday’s polls to the Shilpi Samity.
Actress Nipun Akter, who lost the election to Zayed Khan after contesting from Ilias-Nipun panel, filed an appeal challenging the result on Saturday. After recounting, the appeal board once again declared Zayed Khan the winner.
At a press briefing at the National Press Club on Sunday, Nipun brought allegations of vote purchase against her rivals and said, “Zayed Khan, the election commission and the FDC MD jointly plotted against us. It needs to be investigated”.
She added, “Votes were bought with money in the polls. A video of it has gone viral. The whole country has seen it. It is not fair as per the charter of the organisation. I will take this to the High Court”.
The actress also brought allegations of sexual harassment against Pirjada Harun and said that she has filed a general diary with Banani Police Station for the safety of her life.
The press briefing was attended by many panellists from Ilias-Nipun panel including Ilias Kanchan, Riaz, Symon Sadik, Jasmine, Jadu Azad and Simanto.
In the Shilpi Samity polls for the term 2022-2024, Misha-Zayed panel secured seven positions in the 11-member executive of the artistes’ body while the rest three are from Ilias-Nipun panel.
