Muhammad Zafar Iqbal (born December 23, 1952) is a Bangladeshi writer, physicist, and educator. He is widely regarded as the pioneer of popularizing science fiction as a literary medium in Bangladesh. In addition to his science fiction writing, he is also a popular children's book author and columnist. His work has also been adapted into several novel films.
In addition to his writing and literary career, Iqbal is also currently a professor of computer science and engineering at Shahjalal University of Science and Technology and the head of the Electrical Strategy Department. During the closing ceremony of a robotic competition at Shahjalal University of Science and Technology, at 3 pm on March 27 (3 March 2018), a madrasa student named Faizur was attacked by the audience for attempting to kill him.
In 2024, Iqbal faced significant criticism from student groups during the nationwide quota reform protests for his reaction to protest slogans and perceived lack of support. This led to tensions, including his being declared persona non grata by students at his university.
On Saturday, March 3, 2018, at 5:40 PM, Professor Muhammad Zafar Iqbal was stabbed at Shahjalal University of Science and Technology in Sylhet. At the time, the closing ceremony of the Robotics Competition of the Electrical and Electronic Engineering (EEE) Festival was underway at the university's open stage. According to eyewitnesses, at one point during the event, a commotion broke out. During this, someone attacked the professor's head.
Immediately after the attack, Zafar Iqbal was taken to Sylhet M.A.G. Osmani Medical College Hospital. There, he was taken into the operating theater, where his wounds were cleaned and stitched. He had four blows to the head, believed to be from a metal rod. In addition, he had stab wounds on his left hand and back. Zafar Iqbal received 26 stitches to the head, six to his left hand, and another six to the left side of his back â totaling 38 stitches.
Right after the attack, students and police officers present at the scene apprehended the attacker. The young man was beaten by the crowd and taken to the university's administrative building. There, university authorities and police officials interrogated him.
According to investigative reports from various newspapers, the assailant who attacked author Zafar Iqbal is named Faizur Rahman, also known as Faizul (24). He is a resident of Sheikhpara, adjacent to the bus stand in Kumargaon, near the university campus. He is the son of Hafiz Atikur Rahman, the owner of a house named "Kacha Monjil" in Sheikhpara. His ancestral home is in the village of Kaliarkapon, under Jagdal Union in Dirai Upazila of Sunamganj. He used to work at a shop named "Moin Computer" in Sylhet.
According to locals and the Counter Terrorism and Transnational Crime (CTTC) unit, Faizur passed the Dakhil exam from Dhol Madrasa in Dirai. He then sat for the Alim exam from a madrasa in Sylhet. After passing Dakhil from the madrasa, he did not continue his education. However, no one knows from which madrasa he took the Alim exam. Faizul's father, Maulana Atikur Rahman, is known to be a teacher at Shah Khurrum Mokhlisia Hafizia Women's Madrasa in the Tukerbazar area, adjacent to the Sylhet-Sunamganj road.
The CTTC further reported that Faizul had been living with his family in the area near the university for about 20 years. His father bought land in Sheikhpara and built a semi-pucca house there. Immediately after the attack on Saturday, Faizul's family locked up their home in Sheikhpara and fled elsewhere by CNG-run auto-rickshaw.
During the operation, the attacker's uncle Fazlur Rahman was arrested, and books and CDs were seized from the home of the attacker's father, Maulana Atikur Rahman. The arrested Fazlur Rahman Fazlu is the Joint Convener of the Sunamganj District Farmers' League. He is involved in the land-selling business.
On Sunday night at around 10:30 PM, Faizul Hasan's father Hafiz Atikur Rahman and mother Minara Begum were arrested by police from the Madina Market area in Sylhet city.
After multiple interrogations, the attacker identified Zafar Iqbal as an enemy of Islam and revealed this as the motive for the attempted murder. The commanding officer of RAB-9 confirmed this information. Later, Faizul told RAB that the attack on Zafar Iqbal was carried out because of his novel "Bhuter Baccha Solaiman" (Solaiman, the Ghost's Child).
The Sylhet Bureau reported that the attacker, Faizul Hasan, confessed to attempting to kill Dr. Zafar Iqbal because he had been inspired by extremist ideology. In RAB's initial interrogation, Faizul admitted that he attacked Professor Dr. Zafar Iqbal because the novel "Bhuter Baccha Solaiman" mocked the Prophet Solomon. Faizul claimed, "Zafar Iqbal is an enemy of Islam, that's why I attacked him to kill him. He is an atheist himself and spreads atheism to others. His writings mislead people." This confession was reported on Sunday by the commanding officer of RAB-9. RAB stated that Faizur Rahman, also known as Faizul, also known as Shafiqur, is a believer in extremist ideology. He was influenced to carry out the attack by listening to religious sermons (waz), watching videos online, and reading books. A RAB official mentioned that Faizul had gone to the university campus twice on the day of the attack. Faizul stated that at the time of the attack, there was no one else around him.
The writer's nephew and playwright, Nuhash Humayun, said in response, "No matter what pain or conflict or even death may come â his family will continue trying to change society."
The writer's wife, Yasmeen Haque, told the media, "Zafar Iqbal will return to campus. He has five courses to teach." She directly rejected the allegation that the police were negligent in their duties.
The writer's daughter, Yesham, said in response, "These kinds of people are like fungi. They haven't been properly cleaned out... They're not going anywhere from this country that was born out of something like the Liberation War."
After being discharged from the hospital, the he expressed sorrow for those who engage in murderous intent, while missing out on feeling the beauty of the world and doing good as young people.
Since the attack, Zafar Iqbal had been eager to meet the assailant Faizur, but the meeting took place several days later. When he finally met Faizur, who was being held in Sylhet Jail, the author noted that the assailant's face bore a cheerful expression. The author asked Faizur why he had committed the act, to which he replied that he did it because Principal Iqbal was anti-Islam.
When asked why he thought so, Faizur said it was because of the book Bhuter Baccha Solaiman ("The Ghost Child Solaiman"). In response to the professor's question, Faizur admitted he had not read the book before attacking the teacher. Although the police later made him read it, even then, he could not find anything in it that was anti-Islam.
After speaking with Zafar Iqbal, Faizur stated before leaving that he had made a mistake. In his book Obishshashyo Shundor Prithibi ("An Incredibly Beautiful World"), Zafar Iqbal expresses his dismay, saying, "No guilt or remorseâÂÂFaizur simply believes he made a mistake."
The professor casts doubt on whether Faizur truly believes that, and dismissing the matter, he notes at the end of the book, "Just to see this wonderful world means so much to him."