The night was like any other. Being a teacher, he was reviewing students' scripts while having a chit-chat with his wife and their five-year-old daughter. His eldest daughter, a ninth grader, was preparing her lesson in the other room. 

Everything was fine until a band of criminals changed it all.

On Saturday, around 9:00pm, the thugs equipped with sticks and sharp weapons suddenly started vandalising the tin-roofed house of Gulbar Rahman, an assistant headteacher of Jamgram High School in Nurpur area of Taherpur municipality in Rajshahi's Bagmara upazila. 

Gulbar alleged that Sohel Rana, Jubo League president of Ward 7 of the municipality, led the attack as he had rebuked Sohel's younger brother, Sihab Ali Sobuj, for stalking his students.

He said he had done what he was supposed to do -- coming forward to safeguard his students. But least he imagined that he would have to pay a price for that in such an unpleasant way. 

On that night, the attackers were not just vandalising his house, at the same time they were hurling abuse at Gulbar and his family.

At one point, they  finally entered the house after breaking the door, said Gulbar, adding that his wife had then locked him and his younger daughter in the bedroom so the attackers could not harm them.    

Soon, several other criminals made their way inside and ransacked a room and other valuables. 

"As they could not find me, they started beating my wife and eldest daughter and harassed them," alleged the teacher. “I can't tell you everything that happened…,” he could not finish his sentence.

The attackers also tried to break the door of the bedroom. “I heard an attacker even telling someone to shoot me through a hole in a window,” he said.

“Locked inside, I called the police for help,” said Gulbar, adding, “Police responded quickly”.

The attackers had already left the house before the police reached the scene, said Nasim Ahmed, officer-in-charge of Bagmara Police Station.

The tormented family was finally freed.

Following the attack, Gulabar filed a case with Bagmara Police Station on Sunday accusing Sohel, his brother Sobuj and 16 others.

Police on Monday arrested three persons. They are Bangladesh Chhatra League activist Nazmul Haque, 22, Jubo League activist Afzal Hossain, 30, and Awami League activist Afiz Uddin, 52 -- all from Nurpur village. They were sent to jail custody, said police.

Gulbar said two female students of his school -- one of class VI and the other of class IX -- earlier complained to him that Sobuj had been stalking them for long.

In the last month, Sobuj entered into female common room of Jamgram High School and took photographs of the girls on his mobile phone. Sobuj even attempted to sexually assault one of the girls, but other girls resisted the move. Gulbar then rebuked Sobuj. He again rebuked Sobuj on February 25 when the latter stalked one of the girls. Gulbar then informed the matter to the school's

headmaster.

But nothing could stop Sobuj from stalking the girls.

A ransacked room inside the house. Photo: Anwar Ali

On Saturday, some of the students of the school beat up Sobuj while stalking the girls again. 

Contacted, Shawkat Islam Mollah, headteacher of the school, said he had heard about the stalking incident, but none of the girls complained to him.

The students who beat up Sobuj, included one of Gulbar's nephews, claimed the headmaster. The attack on Gulbar's house might have been carried out in line with that, he added. However, OC Nasim of Bagmara Police Station said the attack might have taken place following the teacher's protest against the stalking.

Locals said Jubo League leader Sohel is a close associate of Taherpur municipality Mayor Abul Kalam Azad.

Under the shelter of the mayor, Sohel has been involved in different criminal activities in the area for long, they added.

This correspondent could not reach Sohel and Sobuj as they were on the run.  

Contacted, Mayor Abul Kalam Azad echoed the headmaster. He said the attack on Gulbars' was a crime, but it happened after Sohel's brother was beaten up. He, however, declined that he was patronising Sohel.