People killed in firing by criminals, claim police in case statements

Police have filed at least 64 lawsuits over the killing of people in quota reform protests. According to the case statements, they were killed by indiscriminate firing of miscreants and terrorists, not by the police, Border Guard Bangladesh (BGB) and Rapid Action Battalion (RAB) members.

Prothom Alo could collect information on 34 cases filed by the police. Analysing those cases, it is found that the statements of these cases are almost identical.

The case statements read that leaders of Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP), Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami and their associate parties, at the behest of their top leadership, or the miscreants attacked police with firearms, explosives or lethal weapons. The incidents of killing took place by these criminals who were masquerading as quota protesters.

Apart from the cases filed by the police, relatives of three victims also filed separate cases. Those cases also mentioned deaths by ‘criminals’ shooting’.

Prothom Alo called plaintiffs of two of these cases. They said they were not aware about the procedure of filing a case and their signatures were taken when they received the bodies of the victims.

At least 212 people have died in different districts of the country, including Dhaka, since last 16 July due to protests and clashes centering the quota reform movement.

The government, however, has reported 150 deaths so far. During the clashes, some people died on the streets, inside their houses and on the roofs.

Police filed a case on 28 July over the death of a three-year-old named Abdul Ahad in Kadamtali. Sub-inspector KM Jahan-e-Alam is the plaintiff in the case. According to the case statement, Ahad was shot around 1:30 pm while standing on the balcony of his house. He was declared dead after being taken to Dhaka Medical College Hospital.

Around 7,000-8,000 unidentified miscreants have been accused for the killing of Ahad.

The police said in the case statement that a group of miscreants attacked Kadamtali police station, vandalised and torched different places. They hurled brickbats, threw crude bombs and petrol bombs and shot police. Police used teargas shells, sound grenades and shotguns to disperse the miscreants.

After bringing the situation under control, police came to know that Ahad was killed by indiscriminate shooting of miscreants.

According to the police, they were attacked at the order of leaders of BNP, Jamaat-Shibir and their associate organisations. The leaders of these parties were also among the attackers.

Police learnt all these from locals, CCTV footage and videos gleaned from journalists, said the case statement.

Asked about the death of Ahad, the plaintiff SI KM Jahan-e-Alam told Prothom Alo that who killed Ahad would be found out during investigation.

Deaths occurred in protests in Dhaka and various districts on 16, 17, 19, 20 and 21 July. After that, some people died while undergoing treatment in the hospital. Most of the people died on 18, 19 and 20 July.

The information of a total 37 murder cases filed by the police and relatives in Dhaka has been found. A total of 67 deaths are mentioned in these cases. Among them 62 people died in firing and five died due to beatings and injuries.

The highest number of cases have been filed at Jatrabari police station. Twelve cases were filed in this police station in connection with the death of 28 people.

Mehedi Hasan, a journalist of online news portal, Dhaka Times, was shot to death in Jatrabari on 18 July. Md. Hossain Jayed, sub-inspector of Jatrabari police station, filed a case   on 27 July over the death of seven people including journalist Mehedi. Unidentified persons were accused in this case.

The case statement is almost identical to other ones. The case mentioned two were beaten to death and five shot dead. The plaintiff, police’s SI, told Prothom Alo that journalist Mehedi and others were killed in bullets fired by the criminals, who impersonated the quota protesters. Police members were also killed and injured by the criminals. Persons behind these killings would be revealed in investigation.

However, relatives of at least two killed claimed that police, BGB and RAB personnel fired heavily during the clashes. Now they are apprehensive about getting justice as the police themselves filed the case.

Journalist Mehedi’s brother Jahid Ashik told Prothom Alo in front of Dhaka Medical College Hospital (DMCH) on 19 July that his brother’s chest was sprayed by bullets while he was on duty in front of Shanir Akhra fish market.

He demanded justice over the killing of his brother.

Prothom Alo asked the former inspector general of police (IGP) Nur Mohammad about the claims of the relatives and the statements filed by the police.

He insisted on conducting investigations of every incident impartially. “Failure to carry out impartial investigation and bring the real criminals to book would rub salt to the wounds of the relatives of the victims.”

Apart from Jatrabari, two each cases were filed in Mohammadpur and Rampura over death of five people in each police stations, three cases were filed at Bhatara police station over deaths of six people, three with Kadmatali police station over three deaths, two with Lalbagh police station over two deaths, one with Banani police station over three deaths, two each cases with Uttara and Mirpur police stations over deaths of two each, one each case in Dhanmondi and Kafrul police stations over two each deaths, and one each case were filed with Gulshan, Badda and Hatirjheel police stations over death of one each person.

Three relatives filed three cases with Paltan police station over the death of three people. Rickshaw puller Kamal Mia died at DMCH after sustaining bullet wounds at Paltan on 19 July evening. As per the information of the case statement, Kamal’s wife Fatema Khatun is the plaintiff of the case.

She told Prothom Alo over phone on Tuesday evening that she went to DMCH and Paltan police station to receive her husband’s body. She had to sign many papers but she didn’t know anything about the case.

Another case was filed over the killing of businessman Rabbi Alam who died on 19 July night. The plaintiff of the case, Rabbi Alam’s uncle Md. Selim told Prothom Alo on Tuesday evening that he does not know about the case. He also signed on different papers while receiving the body.

The statements of both the cases mentioned they were killed in bullets fired by the miscreants.

Paltan police station’s officer-in-charge Monir Hossain Mollah claimed to Prothom Alo that the relatives filed the cases.

A case was filed with Khilgaon police station over the killing of police inspector Masud Parvez Bhuiyan. His wife Merina Akter filed the case.

In the case statement, she alleged that miscreants killed her husband by hitting with different objects.

Police’s nayek Gias Uddin was killed in Jatrabari area. Fazal Pradhan, a relative of Gias Uddin, filed a case with Jatrabari police station on 24 July.

Names of 17 accused persons were mentioned in the case. The accused include Dhaka city south unit BNP’s joint convener Nabiullah Nabi and 14 other leaders of BNP and its associate organisations.

Prothom Alo talked to OCs’ of five police stations and police members who filed two lawsuits regarding the cases. All of them claimed that no one was killed in law enforcers’ firing. Rather, people died in “bullets fired by terrorists or miscreants who remained hidden among the anti-quota protestors”.

Speaking about this to Prothom Alo, DMP’s media and public relations division deputy commissioner Md. Fark Hossain insisted many infiltrators, including the BNP and Jamaat, and miscreants entered the quota reform movement and carried out criminal activities. Many died in their bullets.

He further said cases are filed based on primary information. Investigations will reveal who fired the bullets. All the actual criminals will be brought to book.

Prothom Alo spoke to at least 15 of the relatives and common people who brought in the bodies at hospitals on 18, 19 and 20 July. They said it is the law enforcement agencies that fired a huge number of bullets.

Several video clippings of the police, RAB and BGB members firing bullets went viral on social media. In some of the videos, the police were seen firing from very close range.

The video of the police’s firing on Begum Rokeya University student Abu Sayeed during the quota reform movement drew a huge criticism.

The statement of the case, filed by the police in connection with the death of Abu Sayeed, however, said Abu Sayeed died at a stage of bullets being fired and brickbats thrown by the protestors.

Meanwhile, Amnesty International in a statement on 25 July said analysing three videos they found evidence of the law enforcement agencies’ use of lethal weapons to quell the protests going beyond the laws in Bangladesh.

Home Minister Asaduzzaman Khan told the media Wednesday, “So many casualties only in the bullets of the police? Enquire about that? We will reveal how many people were killed and with whose bullets.”

Prothom Alo analysed deaths of 150 people out of 212 deceased on which it has received information. Forty five of them are students. The largest section of the remaining deceased are either labourers or small job holders. Three police and one Ansar member and four journalists also died that time.

Speaking about the overall issue, Supreme Court lawyer Shahdeen Malik told Prothom Alo that the country’s criminal justice system has become one of the major tools to suppress the opposition and dissenters.

The people who dissent against the government will be punished by police cases in connection with the deaths during the protests, he said.

* The report, originally published in the print and online editions of Prothom Alo, has been rewritten in English by Galib Ashraf and Shameem Reza