Joynal Abedin Khan : The incidents of killing in ‘gunfights’ and ‘crossfire’ continue in the country since Tuesday.The unabated extrajudicial killings by law-enforcing agencies have concerned the right activists greatly.At least 10 persons, including Jama’atul Mujahideen Bangladesh (JMB) militants, were killed in ‘shootouts’ with the Police and Rapid Action Battalion (RAB) in last four days after the murder of a police superintendent’s wife.According to Ain O Salish Kendra (ASK), a total of 183 people were killed in encounters and shootouts in 2015 and 128 in 2014.At the lasted, a local leader of an extremist group was killed in a ‘gunfight’ with police at Tala upazila in Satkhira on Friday. The deceased was identified as Purba Bangla Communist Party’s leader Mozaffar Sana. He was accused in a dozen of cases, including murder, robbery, mugging, possession of illegal arms and extortion in Satkhira and Naogaon, said Chhagir Mia, Officer-in-Charge (OC) of Tala Police Station. He said, “Police signalled a motorcycle rider to stop at Chara Battola. In turn, the rider hurled two improvised bombs at police and opened fire, injuring two policemen and forcing the law enforcers to retaliate. It left Mozaffar injured. He was sent to Tala Upazila Health Complex, where doctors declared him dead.” Earlier, three persons, including an alleged JMB leader, were killed in separate “gunfights” with law enforcers in the capital and Gaibandha on Thursday.The Gaibandha victim Jahangir Alam was an active member of the JMB, and the Dhaka victims were Nazrul Islam, and Kamal Parvez. Besides, two militant suspects were killed in separate ‘gunfights’ in Bogra and Jessore districts respectively on Wednesday. Of them, deceased Kawsar Ali was the main accused in Bogra Shiite Muslims mosque attack case and an alleged member of JMB. The police could not ascertain the identity of the other deceased, police said. In the meantime, four persons, including three JMB militants, were killed in three separate “gunfights” between “their cohorts” and law enforcers in Dhaka, Rajshahi and Brahmanbaria respectively on Tuesday.The deceased have been identified as JMB leaders Tareque Hasan Milu alias Iliasm Sultan Mahmud Rana alias Kamal and Jamal Uddin. But the other victim could not be identified.The extrajudicial killings are increasing in the country alarmingly, exposing the sorrowful picture of the human rights, said Sultana Kamal, Executive Director of ASK.”The human rights situation is not improving in the country and it is a matter of serious concern. The culture of impunity promotes extrajudicial killings, and as a result, citizens lose their trust and confidence in the law enforcement agencies,” she said.Sultana Kamal said that extrajudicial killings in the name of ‘crossfire’or ‘shootout’ cannot be acceptable in a civilized society. “The country’s law and order has deteriorated to such a level that the government has resorted to crossfire to check it instead of taking legal steps. Extrajudicial killings can’t be the solution of any problem at all.” Mufti Mahmud Khan, Director to the Legal and Media Wing of the elite force, said, “The miscreants were killed in gunfights with law enforcers during the regular and special drive to arrest the culprits to control the law and order.”He claimed that a large number of fire arms recovered from the dead spots and its adjacent areas. So far, at least seven cop personnel received injuries during the ‘gunfights’, he said.
