Guardians of 31 students of Bangladesh University of Engineering and Technology (BUET), who were arrested from Tanguar Haor in Sunamaganj on Sunday, demanded immediate release of the students.

They made the demand at a press conference held at Shaheed Minar in the university on Tuesday afternoon.Claiming their sons as innocent, the guardians at the press conference said allegation that their sons are involved with politics is baseless, false and motivated.

Police members of Tahirpur Police Station on Sunday afternoon arrested 34 people, including 24 current and seven former students of BUET from a trip in Tanguar Haor. Later, police lodged a case against the students with the police station under Anti-Terrorism Act.

Police claimed that all the arrested people are involved with the politics of Chhatra Shibir. They went to Tanguar Haor to hold secret meeting and hatch anti-government conspiracy. They had plan to hamper public safety and do harm of public’s lives and assets.

Ali Ahsan Zunaed, brother of BUET student Ali Ammar, read out a written speech at the press conference on behalf the guardians of the arrested students.

In the press conference, Zunaed said, “The BUET students went to a trip in Tanguar Haor on July 29. They were found unavailable for a long time when the guardians wanted to contact with them over mobile phone sets. At about 10.00pm on that day, they made phone calls to their guardians and sought national identity card numbers as per the instruction of police. They told their guardians that police detained them during a trip in the haor and took them to Tahirpur Police Station and interrogated them there. Police told the students that they will be freed after getting their national identity card numbers.”

He said, “Police took the mobile phone sets from the students after talks. We tried to contact with local superintendent of police and officer-in-charge but failed.”

Zunaed in his written speech said, “After passing an anxious moment, we came to know that the students were shown arrested in Anti-Terrorism Act through various reports of media on Monday afternoon. They (BUET students) went there to plan sabotage! We are surprised by this fabricate allegation. We think that this type of ridiculous and false allegation is completely ill-motivated.”

They said they can challenge it that their sons are not involved with any kinds of anti-state activities.

“We are saying it clearly that they (BUET students) are general students. We cannot understand that for which part of conspiracy such a dangerous case has been lodged against them,” said the guardians in the written speech.

The guardians of the arrested students have expressed concern about the future safety of their sons. They demanded immediate release of the students.

BUET students ATM Abrar Muhtadi’s mother Wahida Nasrin, Haisam Bin Mahbub’s mother Fatema Begum and Afif Anwar’s father Anwarul Haque, among others, were present at the press conference.