5 Chattogram jail officials sued over custodial torture

The wife of an inmate sentenced for life has approached a court in the port city accusing five officials, including the senior superintendent of Chattogram Central Jail, of torturing her husband.

Parvin Akter, the wife of murder convict Md Shamim, filed the complaint against the five in the court of Chattogram Metropolitan Magistrate Sarwar Jahan on Thursday. The hearing is slated for Tuesday, said bench secretary Md Bakhtiar.

Those named in the complaint are senior jail superintendent Shafiqul Islam, jailor Dewan Mohammad Tariqul Islam, deputy jailor Md Saimur, and jail guards Sabuj Dash and Md Emdad Hossain.

According to the complaint, Shamim was admitted to Chattogram jail hospital on 17 July. However, when he demanded food, the five jail officials beat him up. And next day, he was shifted to Cumilla Central Jail.

On 11 November, during routine attendance, Shamim apprised the court of his alleged ordeal.

Senior jail superintendent Shafiqul could not be contacted.

On 24 April, 2007, Shamim was sentenced to death in a murder case. However, five years later, a higher court commuted his sentence to life imprisonment.