Worker beaten dead in Gazipur, factory shut sine die

A worker in a Gazipur factory was allegedly tied up with rope and beaten to death on allegation of theft. As a video of the incident went viral on social media, the factory authorities shut it sine die.

A case has been filed over the death, without mentioning any accused persons. Police arrested a person in connection with the case on Sunday night.

The incident took place at Greenland Limited factory in Gazipur’s Konabari on Saturday morning. The victim Hridoy, 19, is son of Abul Kalam from Tangail’s Ghatail upazila. He would work as mechanical technician of the factory.

A video of 1 minute 16 seconds showing Hridoy being beaten up, has gone viral on Facebook. He is seen seated shirtless on a sofa, with his hands and feet tied with rope to the window bars of a room in the factory. He was writhing in pain. At one point, blood is seen gushing out from Hriday’s mouth and nose. Bloodstains were also visible on his jeans. Several people nearby were heard saying, “Nothing has happened to him, he didn’t die even after so much beating.”

In another part of the video, Hridoy is seen being dragged out of a room by several people while still bound hand and foot. One of them had a wooden stick in hand. Hridoy’s hands were tied behind his back with rope connected through a stick, and his legs were also tied with the same rope. In this state, several people tried to make him stand, but Hridoy could not stand properly.

Following the incident, Hriday’s elder brother, Liton Mia, filed a murder case against unnamed accused at Konabari police station on Saturday night. The police on Sunday conducted a raid and arrested a man named Hasan Mahmud, who is also a worker at that factory.

According to police and the case statement, when Hridoy didn’t return home after his shift, his brother Liton and mother went to the factory on Saturday afternoon. Upon arriving, they saw workers protesting and learned that Hridoy had been killed after being falsely accused of theft.

When they inquired about Hridoy’s body, they were told it was at Shaheed Tajuddin Ahmad Medical College. They went there and identified the body.
Liton Mia, the plaintiff, said, “Inside Greenland Limited factory, my brother was brutally beaten to death. His body was sent to the hospital later to divert the incident. We want justice for my brother.”

Konabari Police Station’s officer in charge (OC) Salahuddin said they are working to identify everyone involved in Hridoy’s murder.

“We have already arrested one person. Operations are ongoing to arrest the others,” he said.

The factory authorities issued a notice declaring an indefinite shutdown after the incident. However, Gazipur Industrial Police Superintendent AKM Zahirul Islam said the factory announced a two-day closure after the incident, and the authorities have indicated that it might reopen tomorrow, Tuesday.

Attempts to contact Kamrul Hasan, DGM of Greenland Limited factory, via his mobile phone were unsuccessful as he did not answer repeated calls.