IN the last 15 days, nine alleged criminals were killed during “gunfight” with Rapid Action Battalion (RAB). Of them, three alleged drug traders were killed in Jassore early Friday, according to a newspaper report. Besides, six other people were killed in shootouts with RAB in different parts of the country, including Narayanganj, Kushtia, Rajshahi, Chapainawabganj and Chattogram. All of them were killed during the ongoing drives against drug business in their respective areas, said a RAB official preferring anonymity, the report said. Earlier on April 1, one Abdur Rahim, 20, was killed in “gunfight” with RAB in Cox’s Bazar. Besides, Haider Ali, 50, was killed at Rampal in Bagerhat same night.
Obviously, we do support the ongoing anti-drug drive and other anti-crime activities by the law enforcement agencies, including RAB. But killing the suspects at the dead of night in the name of “gunfight” cannot be a method of crime control in any civilized country. These are simply extrajudicial killings.
Each and every citizen has the right to get protection from the law and our Constitution ensures that as a basic right of the citizens. A number of 18 fundamental rights have been enumerated in our Constitution commencing from Article 27 to 44. Specifically, the Article 27 guarantees every citizen’s right to equality before the law and equal protection of the laws.
So, the Law Enforcing Agencies’ main task is produce the alleged criminals before the court and the law would decide about their fate. Here, RAB or any other agency cannot feel free to kill them. But our Law Enforcement Agencies have long been enjoying the absolute power of arbitrary arrest, enforced disappearance and extrajudicial killing. The Detective Branch of the police, the Border Guard Bangladesh (BGB), the Directorate General of Forces Intelligence (DGFI), and the RAB have all been accused of serious violations of human rights. It is the responsibility of the state to protect its citizens. All state organs whether they are the police, RAB, or intelligence agencies have a duty to respect human rights and the Constitution of the country.
The RAB members have their Constitutional responsibility of not killing citizens without trial in a court of law. If they, as trained people, must justify killing citizens, who pay them for protection of life, than anybody will have the right to kill other in self defence.
For the well trained police officials killings in crossfire are not acceptable. They are supposed to risk their lives to arrest the criminals alive for the courts to decide punishments for they are found guilty. The whole judicial system will falter if the RAB officials feel free to kill people under cover of self defence. They have to prove in court that the killing was the last resort and not the easiest recourse.
Unfortunately we have no political leadership but we are citizens and all are not educated to our responsibility to the people. It is a shame to us who are educated and conscious of their responsibility as citizens that our country is criticised and condemned repeatedly by the international human rights bodies for human rights violations. They think we are unfit as a free nation to know how to protect life of our own people.
