Ayas, Marzia sent to jail as court rejects bail in Tagore graffiti case

Image- Collected

A Dhaka court has rejected the bail petitions of Rashtra Sanglap Forum President ANM Ayas and his associate Marzia Khandaker Rimi in a case over the alleged defacement of graffiti depicting Rabindranath Tagore.

Dhaka Metropolitan Magistrate Md Riad Hasan ordered their detention on Wednesday after a brief hearing. A commotion between defence and state lawyers disrupted the proceedings, forcing the magistrate to leave the courtroom temporarily.

Police filed the case on October 11, accusing Ayas and three associates of criminal conspiracy, promoting enmity and inciting religious hatred. Ayas and Marzia were detained on October 10 alongside Sakibul Hasan and Sujon Mia, and all four were subsequently remanded for questioning.

According to the investigation, Marzia allegedly smeared black ink over Tagore’s portrait on a wall opposite Bangladesh Shilpakala Academy in Segunbagicha. The accused were also alleged to have attempted to stir religious tensions ahead of Durga Puja.

The graffiti was part of a series of portraits of 10 prominent figures in Bangladesh’s art, literature and culture painted after the Dhaka South City Corporation cleared a nearby footpath of encroachments.