Youths cheer up as Shafik Rehman is coming back today

 
Shafik Rehman - an eminent journalist, television host and a writer who has been in exile in London, United Kingdom for the past six years - is coming back to Bangladesh today (Sunday 18 August 2024). Confirming the matter on Saturday, Bangladesh

Nationalist Party (BNP) media cell member Shairul Kabir Khan said, "A reception ceremony will be organized at Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport on the occasion of journalist Shafik Rehman's return to Dhaka at 12 noon on Sunday.

"A Shafik Rehman Return Committee has been formed to make the ceremony a success. Sajib Onassis has been made committee convener, while Jahidul Islam Rony has been made member secretary. The coordinator is Rajiv Ahsan Chowdhury Pappu and the adviser is Hasanur Rahman" Shairul Kabir Khan further said.

On August 17 last year, Dhaka Additional Chief Metropolitan Magistrate Asaduzzaman Noor sentenced five people including journalist Shafik Rehman and daily Amar Desh Acting Editor Mahmudur Rahman to seven years in prison in the case filed over "conspiracy to kidnap and kill" Sheikh Hasina's son Sajeeb Wazed Joy.

At the same time, they were fined Tk 5,000 each, and another month of imprisonment in default. Sajeeb Wazed Joy had testified in the court on 13 November 2022 in the case.

A police officer had filed the case with the capital's Paltan Police Station on August 3, 2015. Shafik Rehman was arrested in this case back on April 16, 2016. Later on he was released on bail and had to leave the country.

Shafik Rehman was the founder of the celebration of Valentine's Day in Bangladesh which he initiated back in 1994. In Bengali Valentine's Day is known as "Bhalobasha Dibosh" which is celebrated in Bangladesh on 14 February every year like the rest of the world. Thus Shafik Rehman became an iconic figure to the young generation across Bangladesh. 

Shafik Rehman also edited a widely read and reputed Bengali magazine Jay Jay Din with highly entertaining, rich and informative content from 1990s to 2004. Jay Jay Din afterwards became a daily Bengali newspaper but the immediate past Awami League (AL) government removed Shafik Rehman from the editor post of the newspaper and gave the newspaper's proprietorship to a pro AL businessman.

Shafik Rehman also hosted a popular television program titled "Lal Golap" (Red Rose). First state-owned Bangladesh Television (BTV) showed this weekly program. Later on, since BTV stopped the transmission of this program, Bangla Vision, a private satellite television channel showed Lal Golap for some years.

Shafik Rehman's role in the anti-autocracy movement against former military dictator Hussain Muhammad Ershad was very conspicuous and remarkable. Hussain Muhammad Ershad, who was in power from 1981 to 1990, forced Shafik Rehman to move away from Bangladesh.

However, a spree of delight, excitement and cheers has spread out among young boys and girls of Bangladesh as well as educated citizens of all ages as a legendary journalist and towering media personality like Shafik Rehman is coming back to his own country today.