M M Jasim :The law enforcing agencies are yet to unearth the clue and motive behind the murder of Tonu although the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) of Police claimed that they have huge information. Since the murder of Tonu on March 20, the protest demanding to arrest and award exemplary punishment to the killers continues. In continuation of the protest, two platforms of some left leaning student organisations (the Progressive Students’ Alliance and Anti-Imperialist Students’ Union) on Saturday called countrywide hartal for Monday. They will bring out a torch procession today in favour of the countrywide hartal. The announcement came at a joint press conference held at Modhu’s Canteen on the Dhaka University campus on Saturday afternoon. Faisal Mahmud, Convener of Anti-Imperialist Students’ Union, said the torch procession will portray the symbol of fight and protest against repression and abuse on women everywhere in Bangladesh. “There is a culture of impunity in our country. Killers, rapists and wrongdoers are pardoned. This practice must be stopped. Our movement is against such bad practice,” he said. They will also campaign through Dhaka city and elsewhere to make the hartal a success.According to information detailed in the press conference, 11 student organisations of the two alliances and about 13 other political parties will be in the field “to make the hartal successful”.They said also to have spoken to transport leaders urging them to restrain from plying vehicles in the city and urged all to participate in the “hartal for justice” spontaneously.Sohagi Jahan Tonu, a second year history student of Comilla Victoria College and a cultural activist, was murdered near the Comilla Cantonment area on the night of March 20. Though a month has elapsed, apparently there has been no significant progress to identify the killers.Entire country went on an outrage as comments and opinions flooded the social media condemning the murder. Several protest programmes and demonstrations have been held. The two major alliances of left-leaning student organisations called for a hartal on April 7 and they were barred from besieging the home ministry over the same demand.The case of Tonu murder was handed over to CID of Police on March 29. But no headway is yet to be seen after 26 days. The CID officials are also optimistic of unearthing the clue and motive behind Tonu murder. The CID officials questioned as many as 56 people, including Tonu’s family members, in 23 days and gathered sufficient information’. CID Special Superintendent of Police Abdul Kahar Akanda said, they are still verifying the information.” We hope to reach a conclusion very soon,” he said. SSP Kahar Akanda was the investigation officer in many sensational cases including the Bangabandhu murder, the August 21 grenade attack and the BDR mutiny.Now he is heading the team of investigators, who are assisting the main panel probing the murder case, which was handed over to CID on March 29.
