Ruplal, Pradip killed with extreme brutality amid cheers

When Ruplal Das and Pradip Lal were brought to Burirhat High School in Taraganj, Rangpur, on suspicion of theft, they were still alive.

In a 5-minute and 21-second video circulating on social media, it is seen that even though the police were present at the scene, they were unable to save them.

The video shows Ruplal and Pradip placed on a van in the middle of the school field, surrounded by hundreds of people—mostly young men at the front.

Four police officers were seen blowing whistles and raising their hands, trying to calm the crowd.

Ruplal tried but failed to stand; lying down, he was seen adjusting his loosened lungi.

When police attempted to push back the crowd, the mob became more agitated. As the commotion intensified, the police withdrew, leaving the two men—already half-dead from the beating—behind.

Around 9:00pm last Saturday, two men were beaten to death in the Bottola Burirhat area of Sayer Union, Taraganj.

The victims were Ruplal Das, 40, from Ghonirampur village in Kursha union, and his relative Pradip Lal, 35, from Chhoran Baluya village in Mithapukur.

Ruplal used to repair shoes at a local market, while Pradip earned his living by driving a van.

The widely circulated video shows that after the police left, Ruplal lifted his head, only to be punched by a young man in a black t-shirt. Ruplal collapsed again.

Following this, the young men began to hit the two individuals lying on the van with punches, kicks, sticks, and rods. At one point, Pradip Lal fell from the van to the ground. Many people were recording this scene with their cell phone flashlights on.

The video shows that after Pradip Lal fell to the ground from the van, he was continuously kicked. Ruplal, who was half-naked, was then overturned onto Pradip Lal along with the van. Both of them were trapped under the van. After this, people started pushing down on the van that was on top of them. At that time, a whistle was heard, but no police officers were seen. Several people can be heard saying, "He's still not dead. Push down, push down on it. Give it more."

At one point, several young men removed the van from on top of Ruplal and Pradip. They then started to beat the two men, who were now motionless, with ropes, shoes, tree branches, and the van's pedals. Four or five young men in yellow, black, and red t-shirts repeatedly kicked Rup Lal in the back to ensure their deaths. Two young men in yellow t-shirts kicked him multiple times along his spine with both feet.

Meanwhile, some people nearby shouted, "Give it, give it more." Pointing at Pradip Lal, one person said, "Give him some, too. Hit him. The rod won't go in," and started cheering. Hearing this, a young man in a yellow t-shirt began hitting him even more with a tree branch. A young man in an ash-coloured t-shirt then put his foot on Ruplal's throat to ensure he was dead. Some people nearby were saying, "The police have fled."

According to several eyewitnesses, 15 to 20 young men led the assault in the Burirhat High School ground. Although police officers initially arrived, they took no effective action and eventually left out of fear. Later, when three vehicles carrying police and army personnel arrived, Ruplal had already died at the scene. By then, most of the people present had fled.

Police stated that when the victims were taken to Taraganj Upazila Health Complex, physicians declared Ruplal dead on arrival. Pradip was transferred to Rangpur Medical College Hospital, where he died at 4:00am on Sunday.

On Sunday afternoon, Ruplal’s wife, Bharati Rani, filed a murder case at Taraganj police station, naming between 500 to 700 individuals as accused. After the autopsy, when Ruplal’s body was brought home, locals placed the body on the Rangpur-Dinajpur highway around 6:30pm, staging a blockade and protest. They issued a 24-hour ultimatum for the arrest of those involved. That night, police arrested four individuals.

The arrested are: Ebadat Hossain, 27, from Balapur, Akhtarul Islam, 45, and Rafiqul Islam, 33, from the Burirhat area, and Mizanur Rahman, 22, from Rahimapur.

Following the incident, fear of arrest has gripped the area, leaving it largely deserted of men. In response, BNP leaders and activists visited the area to reassure innocent traders and residents not to panic.

At a street gathering in Burirhat market around 7:00pm. on Tuesday, Taraganj upazila BNP general secretary Mehedi Hasan Shipu said, "Those who were involved in the incident, who incited it, who directly beat those two men — they are the real criminals. Many people actually tried to save them; they should not be labeled as offenders. If the people of this area are to blame, then the police are the first to be blamed — because two police vans came and did nothing to save them. Instead, they ran away."

"Filing a case against 700 people unnecessarily — is this some kind of business scheme? We will not allow people to be terrified just so money can be extorted. We will not defend those who are guilty. About 20 to 25 individuals incited the violence — the general public was not involved. Continue your businesses and stay in your homes without fear. If anyone harasses you, we will give a strong response," he added.

The officer-in-charge (OC) of Taraganj police station, MA Faruq, told Prothom Alo that there were thousands of people at the scene, while only four police officers were present.

He said the officers were trying to save Ruplal and Pradip, but when they were pushed and punched from behind, they had to retreat out of fear for their own lives.

"There was nothing more the police could do," he said. The OC added that efforts are underway to identify and arrest the actual culprits based on video footage.