Police detained two women on 15 August while they were attempting to pay respects at Sheikh Mujibur Rahman’s portrait at Dhaka’s 32 Number residence. One was Suma Baral, also known as Dolly, from Kurmani village in Chitalmari, Bagerhat. Discussion about her identity intensified after a video showed her crying while embracing a demolished Mujib sculpture, which she posted on Facebook.

The report identifies Baral as the daughter of late freedom fighter Pratul Kumar Baral and Sadhana Baral. She is the youngest of two sisters and one brother. She completed secondary education at Chitalmari Hasina Begum Girls’ School and a degree at Bagerhat Khanjahan Ali College, and is now studying law in Dhaka. She is unmarried and lives with her brother.

Later that night, Baral and another woman, Jannatul Ferdous, known as Jannat, faced public hostility while seeking to place flowers at the portrait and were taken to a police station. A case has reportedly been filed against them at Dhanmondi Model Police Station. Some people labelled them workers of the banned Chhatra League, while Baral’s brother Liton said their family has no affiliation with any political party.