The parents of murdered Comilla college student Sohagi Jahan Tonu have sought a meeting with Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina as police investigation into the murder appears to hit a roadblock. “It has been nine months since our daughter’s murder and the CID has not assured us of any progress in the case,” Tonu’s father Md Yaar Hossain told bdnews24.com “The only thing we can do is pray to Allah for justice,” he said. “But we want to meet with the honourable prime minister and speak with her. We would be able to tell her of our pain.” Yaar Hossain, who is on the cantonment board, alleged that their home in the Comilla cantonment is still being closely watched. CID officials have been tight-lipped about identifying suspects or revealing progress in the case, he said. Tonu’s mother, Anwara Begum, told bdnews24.com that the case could be solved if police arrested the suspects she and the media had named.
The Ganajagaran Mancha had called for a protest rally on Friday at Comilla’s Pubali Square to demand the arrest and trial of those responsible for the college student’s murder, but the rally did not happen. The body of 19-year-old Tonu was found near her house in Comilla Cantonment on Mar 20. Police suspected she had been raped before her murder. The murder was mourned across the country and generated controversy after an initial autopsy at Chittagong Medical College Hospital could find no evidence of rape, or point to the cause of death.
The court ordered doctors at Chittagong Medical College Hospital to conduct a second autopsy on March 30. A team of doctors led by the hospital’s forensic department chief Kamda Prasad Saha provided the second autopsy report to police two-and-a-half months later. The report concluded that Tonu had engaged in ‘sexual intercourse’ before her death, but the doctors evaded questions on the suspected rape.
After DNA tests, the CID confirmed that Tonu had been raped. But, nine months later, no suspects have been identified or arrested. Comilla CID Addition Superintendent of Police Pranab Kumar Ray told reporters on Saturday that the investigation was underway. “We have not been able to identify any suspects as yet, but our efforts continue,” said case investigation officer and CID Assistant Superintendent of Police Jalal Uddin Ahmed.
