Staff Reporter :The enforced disappearance of the some people continues in various parts of the country, raising concern among the civil society and rights group.A good number of missing victims picked up from their residences, work places, relatives’ houses, transports and elsewhere never come back.Some of them are reported to have died in ‘gunfight’ with the members of the law-enforcing agencies or in custody.There are widespread accusation against the DB Police and Rapid Action Battalion of committing illegal activities in plain clothes. As such, the victims’ relatives do no get any support from the DB Police and the RAB after filing of the complaints, it is alleged.Abdullah Shams-Bin-Tariq, President of Ahmadiya Community, Rajshahi Region Unit, alleged that a team of DB Police picked up their three local leaders from their house in Puthia on December 25 night.He claimed that they could not find their leaders at any police station. The missing persons are Abu Sayeed, Ashraful Islam and Shafiqul Islam. When contacted, Aslam Ahmed, Senior Assistant Commissioner of Rajshahi Metropolitan Police (RMP), said that Police did not arrest any person from Puthia that night. Two local Chhatra Shibir leaders were shot and injured in a reported gunfight with police at Jatair village in Panchbibi upazila of the district on December 17. The injured are Abu Jar Ghiffari, President of Joypurhat unit Shibir, Omar Ali, Secretary of the unit. They went missing from a Dhaka-bound bus in the capital’s Abdullahpur area on December 8. Besides, three local policemen, including a sub-inspector, got injured in the shootout erupted in an orchard of the village early Friday. When asked, Panchbibi Police Station Officer-in-Charge (OC) Ashraful Alam acknowledged it and said, “We arrested two Shibir leaders from a secret meeting held at a orchard. Sensing our presence, Shibir members started firing at us forcing Police to retaliate, leaving three people injured.”Safayat Hossain, former President of Bangladesh Islami Chhatra Shibir, Mithapukur Upazila Unit in Rangpur District, was picked up by Detective Branch (DB) of Police on 26 July, from his own home. Similar to many other incidents, police denied his arrest, frightening his family members and fellow activists to believe that Shafayat Hossain might be another victim of the ‘crossfire’. Shafayat’s status and whereabouts are still unknown, political sources said. Records of Ain-o-Salish Kendra (ASK), say that in the last two and a half years, a total of 177 people had been abducted. Of them, 110 are still missing. In most cases of abduction, the members of law enforcement agencies allegedly picked up the missing people.The half-yearly report of the ASK says a total of 36 persons were picked up by people claiming themselves to be law enforcers in a six-month time from January this year. Of them, six were found dead later, two released and three arrested and the rest 25 are still missing.A total of 88 people were abducted in the same fashion last year. Among them, bodies of 23 people were recovered, 12 were freed. The Rapid Action Battalion (RAB) produced seven before newsmen, one was traced in detectives’ custody and the rest are still missing.National Human Rights Commission Chairman Mizanur Rahman said that the situation was more horrific and number of such incidents taking place was much higher than what the media was highlighting. ‘People are increasingly being intimidated by the police.”A section of policemen harass and torture people in the name of law and order. Even they do it out of personal enmity,’ said the NHRC Chairman.Ain-o-Salish Kendra Director (Investigation) Nur Khan said that the police administration took the decision of not operating in plainclothes, but unfortunately, the decision remained in force for few days only.’We still receive allegations from people that they or their family members have been tortured, harassed or abducted by plainclothes police,’ said Nur Khan.Home Minister Asaduzzaman Khan Kamal told the media a few days ago that the incidents, which were said to have been abducted in our country cannot be called abduction. “Many people themselves go into hiding to avoid business or family related crisis,” the Minister said. Police headquarters Assistant Inspector General (Operation) Kazi Ziauddin said that there were, at present, no plainclothes teams at any police stations in the country. Direction has been given to every thana to execute the order.A DMP Deputy Commissioner said that there were no plainclothes teams in the police stations. ‘If necessary, permission from Deputy Commissioners must be taken,’ he said.
