Islamic University teacher killed in plot by 2 other teachers and an official

In connection with the killing of teacher Asma Sadia in her office at the Islamic University in Kushtia, her husband has filed a murder case naming four people. Among them, employee Fazlur Rahman, who was rescued from the office room in a bloodied condition at the time of the incident, has been made the prime accused.

The other accused include two of Asma’s colleagues and an assistant registrar. The two teachers named in the case are Shyam Sundar Sarkar and Habibur Rahman, both assistant professors in the Department of Social Welfare.

Shyam Sundar previously served as the department’s chairman. Another accused, Bishwajit Kumar Biswas, is an assistant registrar of Ummul Momenin Ayesha Siddika Hall. He was transferred there from the Department of Social Welfare some time ago.

Asma’s husband, Muhammad Imtiaz Sultan, filed the case at Islamic University police station late Wednesday night. In the complaint, he alleged that employee Khandakar Fazlur Rahman murdered Asma Sadia following long-term planning and instructions from those two teachers and the official. Unidentified individuals have also been named as accused in the case, though their number was not specified.

Faisal Mahmud, spokesperson for Kushtia police and additional superintendent of police (Crime and Ops), confirmed filing of the case to Prothom Alo. He said, “Four accused have been named in the case. Police are working to arrest them and take legal action.”

On Wednesday afternoon, Asma Sadia Runa, 35, chairman of the Department of Social Welfare and an assistant professor, was stabbed repeatedly in her office at Islamic University.

At the same time, Fazlur Rahman, an employee of the Political Science Department, was rescued from the room in a critically injured condition. He is currently receiving treatment in the intensive care unit (ICU) at Kushtia General Hospital. Asma was buried at Kushtia municipal graveyard on Thursday.

According to the complaint, Fazlur Rahman was appointed as an office assistant in the Department of Social Welfare in 2018 from the department’s fund. Asma Sadia became the department’s chairman in September 2024. The previous chairman, Shyam Sundar, did not hand over the department’s financial accounts from his tenure to Asma.

Assistant registrar Bishwajit Kumar reportedly told Asma that she would only need to sign documents as instructed by them. At the time, Asma warned that departmental funds must be spent transparently and could not be misused. From then on, Asma had been in conflicts with Bishwajit and Shyam Sundar.

The complaint further alleges that the three, including Fazlur, used to embezzle and misuse departmental funds. Fazlur repeatedly obstructed and harassed Asma in various ways. On one occasion, in the presence of teacher Habibur Rahman, Fazlur allegedly used abusive language and behaved indecently towards Asma, but Habibur did not protest.

The complaint also states that Asma verbally informed Rokhsana Mili, dean of the Faculty of Social Sciences, about these incidents. A departmental meeting was later held on the dean’s instructions. Eventually, a few months ago, Fazlur was transferred to the Political Science Department for violating departmental discipline and failing to cooperate with the department chairman.

Teacher Habibur reportedly expressed anger over the transfer and challenged Asma to bring Fazlur back to the department. Meanwhile, Bishwajit was transferred on 18 February following allegations of financial irregularities. After that, they allegedly began planning Asma’s murder together.

The complaint states that Fazlur entered Asma’s office with a sharp knife under the direct instigation and instructions of the two teachers and the official, locked the door and killed her. The case statement also mentions that Asma frequently informed her husband about these incidents at the university.

Late Wednesday night, Fazlur Rahman responded to calls from physicians and police. According to hospital authorities and police, he opened his eyes when called and was able to respond by writing with a pen when asked questions. Police officers collected a two-page written statement from him that night.

In his written statement, Fazlur said he became angry after being transferred by the department chairman (Asma) and after his salary was stopped. He claimed he had been suffering from frustration about his life. Having worked in the department for eight to nine years, he became deeply resentful over the transfer and suspension of salary. From this anger, he planned the killing.

Assistant professor Shyam Sundar Sarkar told Prothom Alo on Thursday night, “We are deeply saddened by the death of our colleague. We did not have any such bad relationship with her that we would instruct someone to kill her. The matter is under investigation. Everything will become clear in time. Someone has lost a loved one. We are teachers—how could we ever kill a person?”

Teacher Habibur Rahman attended Asma Sadia’s funeral prayer. Earlier on Thursday morning, he told journalists on campus, “As a human being, I want proper justice for this incident. If I myself am found to be involved, I want punishment for myself as well.”

Habibur had also gone to Kushtia General Hospital on Wednesday night after Asma was rescued. There he described the incident outside the hospital’s emergency department.

The post-mortem found more than 20 injuries caused by sharp objects on different parts of Asma’s body. The examination was conducted by the resident medical officer (RMO) of Kushtia General Hospital, Hossain Imam, along with medical officers Ruman Rahman and Sumaiya Jannat.

RMO Hossain Imam told Prothom Alo that a powerful blow had been struck below the victim’s throat, causing a deep wound that was likely the cause of death. There were also at least 20 injury marks on her chest, abdomen, arms and legs. These suggest that there was a struggle during the attack. The teacher appeared to have tried to defend herself with her hands, which also sustained injuries.

Asma’s funeral prayer was held after Zuhr prayers on Thursday at the Kushtia Eidgah ground. Member of Parliament for Kushtia-3 constituency Amir Hamza, Islamic University Vice-Chancellor Nakib Muhammad Nasrullah, Pro-Vice-Chancellor Yakub Ali, along with teachers, students, officers and employees of the university attended the funeral.

Before the funeral began, Asma’s husband Imtiaz Sultan said, “My wife accepted the responsibility of department chairman leaving behind a six-day-old baby. Over the past one and a half years, she never neglected her duty even for a single day. Please forgive her.”

Students staged a protest on campus on Thursday morning demanding justice for the killing of teacher Asma.

The protesters announced nine demands, including the swift public execution of the killer, ensuring accountability and trial of anyone involved behind the murder, installing CCTV cameras across the campus, halls and departments with central server storage, restricting entry to campus without smart ID cards, introducing separate uniforms for daily wage employees, ensuring their salaries are paid through bank accounts, maintaining transparent departmental financial records, bringing officers and employees under accountability, and banning outsiders from entering the campus.