Lawsuit filed against innocent ones to ‘save criminals’

Zaidul Islam. Photo: Collected
Zaidul Islam. Photo: Collected

Miscreants attacked and injured a 16-year-old boy critically. His parents took the adolescent boy to hospital for treatment but he succumbed to his injuries. Upon returning home with his body, the family learnt a lawsuit had been filed with the local police station regarding the attack.

The family and local people alleged someone filed the lawsuit against some innocent persons,in a move to save the actual murderers.

When the matter was disclosed two days later, police picked up the parents and brother of the deceased and took them to the station. The victim’s family have kept mum since then.

The deceased, Md. Zaidul Islam, was a 10th grader of Pratisruti Model High School in Ishwarganj upazila of Mymensingh and son of a Rafiqul Islam from Dattapara of the upazila.

On 15 October, Zaidul was going to the school for an exam. A gang of six to seven people intercepted his rickshaw near the upazila hatchery and stabbed his throat. The injured boy was taken to Mymensingh Medical College Hospital first but was then shifted to Dhaka Medical College Hospital, where he died around 3:00am on Wednesday.

“My son was not involved with party politics. I don’t know why he was killed,” Rafiqul Isalm told Prothom Alo on Wednesday.

The head teacher of Pratisruti Model High School Shoaib Mohammad said Zaidul told him over phone about an altercation with some local boys.

Family know nothing of the suit

Zaidul’s mother Nureza Parvin, elder brother Tarekul Islam and a few others took him to Dhaka on Tuesday evening. They returned home with the body on Wednesday afternoon. But police records show, “Zaidul’s mother Mosammat Nurjahan” filed the case at 12:05am on Wednesday.

Journalists went to Zaidul’s home on Thursday. Nureza Parvin told them that the family was busy with her son’s treatment. They returned home around 12:30pm on Wednesday. No one from their family went to the police station by then and no one from the police station came to our home either, she said.

When she was shown the case documents, Nureza repeatedly said, “I did not go to the police station to file the case nor did anyone from the police station come to me.”

Zaidul’s father Rafiqul said the same. He said they don’t know how the case was filed.

This correspondent phoned Mymensingh police super Shah Abid Hossain around 3:00pm on Thursday. He said, “Ishwarganj police station informed me that the victim’s mother filed the suit.”

In response to the question about the time of filing of the case and Nureza Parvin’s absence in Ishwarganj that time, the SP said, “I’m looking into the matter.”

Later it was learnt that a team of police from Ishwarganj police station went to Zaidul’s home around 3:45pm on Thursday and took his parents and elder brother Tarekul Islam to the SP’s office. They were, however, released by the evening.

Ishwarganj police station officer-in-charge Ahmed Kabir Hossain said someone complained to the SP about the case and that is why the family members were called.

Around 6:00pm on Thursday, police super Shah Abid Hossain told Prothom Alo that Zaidul’s mother acknowledged she had filed a complaint to the police station when her son was injured. Police changed that complaint into a case under section 302 (murder charge) after taking permission of the court.

When the SP was asked why the case documents named the plaintiff Nur Jahan, when in actuality Zaidul’s mother’s name is Nureza Parvin, Shah Abid Hossain said, “Nureza Parvin’s nickname is Nur Jahan.”

Regarding the lawsuit, Ishwarganj police station OC Ahmed Kabir Hossain, however, told Prothom Alo on Friday that on behalf of the plaintiff a person came to the police station on Wednesday night.

Declining to comment about the lawsuit, Zaidul’s brother Tarekul Isalm said. “I just want justice for my brother.”