Police stop athlete trainer from boarding metro over clothing
Police officers were recording a video. Sajjad Hossain (right).
Although there are no restrictions on clothing on the metro rail, an athlete trainer wearing shorts was stopped for nearly 40 minutes after police objected to what they described as “indecent” clothing.
The Dhaka Mass Transit Company Limited (DMTCL) acknowledges that it has no authority to determine what passengers should wear on public transport. However, statements from MRT Police indicate that the officers on duty considered wearing shorts to be a form of “public nuisance.”
On Sunday, athlete trainer Sazzad Hossain, who was wearing a T-shirt and shorts, was stopped by police while attempting to board the metro rail on the grounds that he was wearing “indecent clothing.”
According to Sazzad, after he bought a ticket and entered the metro station, a police officer called him over and told him that he could not board the metro wearing those clothes. When he questioned the matter, several officers allegedly laughed at and harassed him. He was eventually allowed to board the metro after permission was obtained from senior authorities.
Describing the incident in a social media post, Sazzad Hossain said he had been training people at Ramna Park in the morning and, after finishing some work in Farmgate, went to board the metro to travel towards Zia Udyan. As he entered after buying a ticket, a police officer on duty called him over and said, “What kind of clothes are you wearing? You cannot enter the metro wearing this kind of indecent clothing.”
Sazzad then asked the officer what type of clothing was considered indecent and where it was written that passengers could not travel on the metro wearing a T-shirt and shorts. He alleged that instead of providing any specific explanation, the officers continued laughing. Even after senior officials were informed, he said, similar comments were made.
Sazzad claimed that after being held for around 40 minutes, permission was finally given by senior authorities for him to travel on the metro. However, he said no one on duty apologised for the harassment. Instead, several employees present at the station allegedly laughed about the incident.
Asked about the incident, DMTCL Deputy General Manager (Security) Mohammad Zakir Siddiqui told Agamir Somoy that police officers assigned to the metro rail are not part of DMTCL. Although MRT Police operate on the metro, they are part of the regular police force.
He said, “What the police did was not right. Metro rail is public transport. There cannot be a dress code on public transport. It is not a matter of deciding what kind of clothes people should wear.”
The DMTCL statement makes clear that there is no general restriction on passengers’ clothing on the metro rail. As a result, questions may be raised about the basis for preventing a passenger from entering because of their clothing without any written regulation.
When asked about the incident, MRT Police Additional Superintendent Abu Ashraf Siddiqui told Agamir Somoy that there is a list of items prohibited on the metro rail. However, he said, the list contains no restrictions regarding clothing.
The police official, however, referred to a provision of criminal law concerning “public nuisance.” According to him, creating a “public nuisance” is a punishable offence.
He said the officers responsible for the incident had been asked to provide a written explanation of the exact grounds on which they stopped the passenger.
Abu Ashraf Siddiqui said the police officers remained cheerful throughout and did not misbehave with the passenger. He said the passenger had also been asked to come in the following day, when the matter would be discussed face-to-face and an explanation and resolution would be sought.
Meanwhile, Sazzad Hossain said that no one from the police contacted him until 8pm following the incident.
He told Agamir Somoy, “No one from the police contacted me. At first, I took the matter normally, but later I felt that it amounted to harassment. I want to make sure that such an incident does not happen again. That is why I filed the complaint.”
