ASM Nasiruddin Elan is a Bangladeshi human rights activist and director of

Odhikar Odhikar () is a Bangladesh-based human rights organization, that was founded in October 1994. It is a member of the International Federation for Human Rights (FIDH). It has been publishing an annual activity report since 2003. Odhikar's work has ...

, a human-rights organization. He is a member of the Police Reform Commission formed by the

Muhammad Yunus Muhammad Yunus (born 28 June 1940) is a Bangladeshi economist, entrepreneur, and civil society leader who has been serving as the Chief Adviser of Bangladesh, Chief Adviser of the Interim government of Muhammad Yunus, interim Yunus ministry, g ...

led Interim government of Bangladesh.

Career

In 2007, Elan was the acting director of Odhikar. Odhikar was founded in 1994. In November 2013, Elan was sent to prison over a case filed regarding Odhikars report on the 2013 Shapla Square protests. Odhikars reported number of deaths in the police operation in Shapla Square to remove activists of

Hefazat-e-Islam Bangladesh Hefazat-e-Islam Bangladesh () is a Deobandi Islamist advocacy group consisting mostly of religious teachers (''Ulama'') and students in Bangladesh. The group is mainly based on qawmi madrasas in Bangladesh. In 2013, they submitted a 13-point ch ...

was more than the government reported number.

Hasanul Haq Inu Hasanul Haq Inu (born 12 November 1946) is a Bangladeshi politician and the former Minister of Information of Bangladesh. He leads a faction of the Jatiya Samajtantrik Dal and was involved in a Marxist insurgency in the 1970s. Early life and ...

, Minister of Information, demanded Odhikar share the list of deaths but was Odhikar refused over security concerns. The case was filed by the

Detective Branch The Detective Branch (; abbreviated as DB) is a specialized unit of the Bangladesh Police. It mostly deals with investigative activities and special operations in sensitive cases and places. The main task of the detectives of this unit is to colle ...

in 2013. In 2017, the Bangladesh High Court refused to squash the case following a petition by Elan and Adilur Rahman Khan. The NGO Affairs Bureau refused to renew registration of Odhikar in June 2021 accusing its reports had damaged the image of Bangladesh. In September 2023, Elan and Adilur Rahman Khan were sentenced to two years imprisonment under Section 57 of the Information and Communication Technology Act, 2006 over their report on the

2013 Shapla Square protests The Shapla Square protests, also known as the Siege of Dhaka, Operation Shapla, and Operation Flash Out by security forces, was the protests and subsequent shootings of protesters on 5 and 6 May 2013 at Shapla Square, located in the Motijheel ...

. The conviction was condemned by the United States Embassy in Dhaka and a number of international human rights organizations. Their conviction was condemned by The Daily Star. 27 human rights organizations demanded their release. They filed an appeal against their conviction with the Bangladesh High Court.

Human Rights Watch Human Rights Watch (HRW) is an international non-governmental organization that conducts research and advocacy on human rights. Headquartered in New York City, the group investigates and reports on issues including War crime, war crimes, crim ...

, CIVICUS Monitor, France and Germany condemned the conviction. In October 2023, they secured bail from the High Court and were released from prison. Justice Md Emdadul Haque Azad accused the public prosecutor and the government of Bangladesh of turning Bangladesh into "hell". After the fall of the

Sheikh Hasina Sheikh Hasina (''née'' Wazed; born 28 September 1947) is a Bangladeshi politician who served as the tenth prime minister of Bangladesh from June 1996 to July 2001 and again from January 2009 to August 2024. Premiership of Sheikh Hasina, Her ...

led

Awami League The Awami League, officially known as Bangladesh Awami League, is a major List of political parties in Bangladesh, political party in Bangladesh. The oldest existing political party in the country, the party played the leading role in achievin ...

government, Elan was made a member of the Police Reform Commission. He was critical of successive police governments using police to target political rivals. His and Adilur Rahman Khan's two-year conviction was overturned by Justice Md Abdur Rob.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Elan, ASM Nasiruddin Living people Year of birth missing (living people) Bangladeshi human rights activists Bangladeshi activists