A case has been filed against 201 individuals—including actors, journalists, former vice-chancellors, and professors—accusing them of attempted murder of Saifuddin Mohammad Emdad, a student at Alia Madrasa in Old Dhaka.

Among the accused are 14 well-known actors: Mamunur Rashid, Chanchal Chowdhury, Riaz, Ferdous, Ashna Habib Bhabna, Saju Khadem, Zayed Khan, Rokeya Prachy, Meher Afroz Shaon, Aruna Biswas, Jyotika Jyoti, Shamima Tusti, Shomi Kaiser, and Sohana Saba.

The Chief Metropolitan Magistrate (CMM) Court of Dhaka ordered an investigation into the matter on Wednesday and directed the Officer-in-Charge of Shahbagh Police Station to submit a report. This information was confirmed to Prothom Alo by court bench assistant, Alamgir Hossain.

The case was filed on March 20 by M. A. Hashem Raju, who is the President for Bangladesh affairs at the International Human Rights Commission and the Chief Coordinator of the Central Executive Committee of the Anti-Fascist Movement.

The accused also include several prominent journalists such as Iqbal Sobhan Chowdhury, Abed Khan, former Samakal editor Alamgir Hossain, Kalbela editor Santosh Sharma, former Bangladesh Pratidin editor Nayeem Nizam, Bhorer Kagoj editor Shyamal Dutta, former Ekattor TV chief Mozammel Haque, Munni Saha, former National Press Club president Farida Yasmin, Mithila Farzana, Masuda Bhatti, and Farzana Rupa.

Other accused include former Vice-Chancellors of Dhaka University (Akhtaruzzaman), National University (Harun-or-Rashid), Jahangirnagar University (Anwar Hossain), Chittagong University (Abdul Mannan), and Noakhali University (M. Wahiduzzaman); as well as former UGC chairman and urban planner Nazrul Islam; DU professors and historians Muntasir Mamoon, Mesbah Kamal, Abu Jafar Md. Shafiul Alam, Mihir Lal Saha, and author-professor Zafar Iqbal.

According to M. A. Hashem and his lawyer ABM Zobayer, the court on March 20 instructed Shahbagh police to verify if a case had been filed over the alleged serious injury to Saifuddin. Police reported that no case had been filed, following which, on April 30, the court ordered a full investigation and submission of a medical injury report for Saifuddin.

The complaint states that Saifuddin took part in an anti-discrimination student protest and was shot in the eye on August 4, 2023, when the demonstration near Paribagh—calling for the ousting of the "autocratic" Sheikh Hasina government—was allegedly attacked by members of the ruling party's student and youth wings.

The case alleges that cultural figures such as Rokeya Prachy and Meher Afroz Shaon used platforms like Facebook, Twitter, and a WhatsApp group named "Alo Ashbe" to glorify violence against protesting students and the public while supporting the Hasina government.

Also named as accused are retired Supreme Court Justice A. H. M. Shamsuddin Chowdhury Manik, former Dhaka WASA MD Taqsem A. Khan, PHP Group chairman Sufi Mizanur Rahman, former student leader Lucky Akter, former Ganajagaran Manch spokesperson Imran H. Sarker, and former district judge Helal Chowdhury.

Deposed Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, her daughter Saima Wazed Putul, and senior Awami League leaders including Obaidul Quader and Asaduzzaman Khan Kamal are also named in the case.

Additionally, another attempted murder case related to the July uprising has been filed on April 28 at Vatara Police Station, naming 17 actors including former actress Suborna Mustafa, Apu Biswas, and Nipun Akter as accused.