Staff Reportter :
The wife and relatives of murdred Narayanganj City Corporation panel mayor and councilor Nazrul Islam on Wednesday demanded that Rapid Action Battalion (RAB) officials involved in the abduction and killing be arrested and brought to justice immediately.
“My husband couldn’t have been killed without the help of the administration. RAB CO Lt Col Tarek Syed Mohammad and others killed him in excjhange for Tk 6 crore,” Selina Islam Beauty said in her reaction on Wednesday evening.
The three RAB officials, accused in abductions and murders of seven people including Narayanganj City Corporation panel mayor and councillor Nazrul Islam, have been dismissed from their parent services for their alleged involvement in the tragedy.
The three officials – ex-Commending Officer of RAB-11 Lt Col Tarek Syed Mohammad and Major Arif Hossain — have been sent on early retirement while and naval officer Lt Commander M Masud Rana on force retirement, sources said.
The sources said a military court of enquiry is probing their alleged involvement in the abductions and killings. If found guilty, they would face court martial.
Lt Col Tareque is son-in-law to a senior Awami League leader and disaster management minister Mofazzal Hossain Chowdhury Maya. He (Maya) is also secretary of Dhaka City Unit of Awami League.
Two days after the abductions on April 29, the home ministry withdrew commanding officer of RAB-11 and three police officials. Later, two more RAB officials were also withdrawn.
Nazrul’s father-in-law Shahidul Islam also demanded immediate arrest of the three former RAB officials so that they could not flee the country. And if they managed
to flee, he said, we would be deprived of justice.
He alleged that a son of a powerful minister brokered the deal with some RAB men to kill Nazrul.
The minister’s son acted on behalf of Narayanganj ward-4 Councillor Nur Hossain, the prime accused in the Nazrul murder case, he claimed.
Earlier on Monday, Shahidul alleged that some Rab men had abducted and murdered the NCC councillor in exchange for Tk 6 crore. He also claimed that some workers saw RAB personnel abduct Nazrul and his four aides near Shibu Market in Narayanganj on April 27.
Senior lawyer Chandan Sarker and his driver were also abducted almost at the same time after they left the court area by two cars in Narayanganj.
Three days later, six bodies, including that of Nazrul and Chandan Sarker, were found floating in the Shitalakkhya river, and another body was found the following day.
On Tuesday evening, Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, who is in charge of the defence ministry, called the acting army chief to her office and enquired about the overall situation of Narayanganj.
The Prime Minister asked to carry out immediate investigation into the Narayabganj incident and submission the report regarding the alleged involvement of the RAB officials. She also called for sacking the said three RAB officials. The acting army chief is learnt to have said that the report would be submitted within a day or two.
Earlier at a weekly cabinet meeting on Monday, the prime minister firmly said that the culprits would be punished no matter how influential they might be. “The government will show zero tolerance for the culprits and this is the prime minister’s firm stance,” said an official source.
On Tuesday, director general of Rab Muklesur Rahman came under fire from the parliamentary standing committee meeting on the home ministry. The RAB chief said if any RAB officer is found involved in the brutal killings, the elite force will not try to protect him.
The parliamentary watchdog committee Chief Tipu Munshi, coming out of the meeting, said they were gravely concerned over the incident in Narayanganj, and the government would do everything to bring the culprits to book.
