Nababarsha graffiti defaced in port city

Days before the Pahela Baishakh celebrations, unknown criminals smeared graffiti painted on roadside walls near Chittagong University's Institute of Fine Arts with burnt lubricants around Tuesday midnight.

The incident has frustrated the teachers and students of the institute on Badsha Mia Road in Chittagong city. They have demanded immediate arrest of the culprits.

The institute, which is about 22 kilometres away from the main university campus, has been the hub of Pahela Baishakh celebrations in the port city for years.

Witnesses said it happened when most of the students had gone home doing daylong preparatory work ahead of the celebrations. The criminals came on two to three motorbikes.

“The gate-keeper [of the institute] told us some people came in motorbikes, spread oil over the graffiti, depicting the Bangla folk culture, painted on around 20 feet of wall and fled towards the Chatteswari Road,” said Abir, a master's student at the institute.

“They also hurled abusive language while leaving,” he told this correspondent when he visited the area yesterday morning.

Kamrul Hasan Bappy, one of the two conveners of the Pahela Baishakh Udjapan Committee and also a Master's student at the institute, said they had painted graffiti on around 70 feet of the wall outside the institute on the theme “Botthola Chapai Chobi”.

Police could not arrest or identify any of the culprits till last night.

Visiting the spot, SM Mostain Hossain, deputy commissioner (South) of Chittagong Metropolitan Police, said, “We have got information that there were some internal conflicts among the institute students over organising the programme. We are also investigating to find out whether it was done by those who are against Pahela Baishakh celebrations.”

A general dairy was filed over the incident.

The students and teachers claimed that there was no such conflict among them.

Artist Prof Dhali Al Mamoon, adviser to the organising committee, said, “Those who are against the Good have done this. They want to isolate us from our history and heritage.”