Gulam Rabbani :
No police official has been suspended or arrested yet despite clear allegations of committing criminal offenses including sexual harassment during the remand of a woman under police custody at Barishal’s Uzirpur Police Station.
Sources said only two police officials who are the prime accused have just been withdrawn to the police lines after lodging a case in this regard.
Taking departmental action against the accused is not a solution in a criminal offence, said Senior Jurist Khandker Mahbub Hossin, adding that the investigation of the case may be influenced if the accused are not arrested or suspended.
But the investigation officer of the case and Additional Superintendent of Police (special branch) Iqbal Hossain said that there is not any kind of pressure on him in conducting the investigation into the case.
When asked as to why the accused police officials were not being arrested or suspended yet despite having clear criminal charges, he said there are some rules for arresting or
dismissing government officials. Actions would be taken against them as per rule.
The investigation report would be submitted in the court as soon as possible after its completion, added the official.
But there are instances in the country of arresting government officials including police officers for serious criminal offenses at the investigation stage. Police arrested Pradeep Kumar Das, former Officer-in-Charge of Teknaf Police Station, after an arrest warrant issued by a court against him in a case filed on charge of killing a retired Army major last year.
On July 2 this year, a woman, who was arrested in a murder case, was produced in the court of Barishal Judicial Magistrate Mahfuzur Rahman after her two-day remand.
In the court, she alleged that investigation officer (IO) of the murder case Inspector Mainul Islam and some other law enforcers at the police station sexually harassed and tortured her, said court sources.
Taking the allegation into cognizance, the judge directed the authorities to conduct a medical test of the woman. He also asked the Director of Sher-e-Bangla Medical College Hospital to submit a report within 24 hours.
Doctors after conducting the test submitted a report where they said injury marks were found in the woman’s both hands, neck and other parts of her body.
On June 26, Uzirpur police recovered the body of vegetable vendor Basudeb Chakraborty in Jambari village. The victim’s brother Barun Chakrabarty filed a murder case against the woman the next day.
Police arrested her on June 28 and produced her in the court on June 30. The court placed her on the two-day remand. After completion of the remand she was again produced in the court on July 2 and on that day she brought allegations.
A case was filed in the Uzirpur Police Station after the court direction. In the case statement, the victim could mention names of two accused, Ziaul Ahsan, former OC of the police station and Mainul Islam, former Inspector of the police station.
She said the ASP of Uzirpur circle was also involved in the incident, but could not mention his name. Besides, she named three other policemen in uniform as accused in the case, said the new OC Md Ali Arshad.
