Following the murder of Jhenaidah-4 constituency MP Anwarul Azim Anar, Kaliganj upazila Awami League raised black flags, as well as party and national flags, at their office on Bhushan Road around 12pm on Thursday.
During the flag hoisting, Ashraful Alam Ashraf, the organizing secretary of the municipal Awami League and the municipal mayor, broke down in tears.
The upazila Awami League has announced a doa mahfil at Jummabad Masjid on Friday and will be wearing black bands.
Leaders demanded that those responsible for Anar's murder be brought to justice and called on Awami League President Sheikh Hasina to facilitate the return of Anar's body.
They also announced a meeting at the upazila Awami League office on Saturday morning.
Following reports in national and various media that Anar's body has not been recovered, people gathered in front of his city residence and the party office on Thursday morning.
Kaliganj police station Officer-in-Charge Abu Azif said that MP Anar's brother Enamul Haque Iman filed a General Diary (GD) on May 19 regarding these incidents. The matter has been reported to higher authorities, and the government is closely monitoring the situation.
According to sources, the MP crossed the Darshana-Gede border into India for treatment on May 12. Anar went to his Indian friend Gopal Biswas’s home in North 24 Parganas district, West Bengal.
The following day, he went out at noon to see a doctor and was supposed to return in the evening. However, he apparently went to Delhi instead and sent a WhatsApp message to Biswas, saying he would call if necessary.
Since then, he could not be reached by phone.
Biswas became concerned, and Anar’s family in Bangladesh also grew anxious.
Biswas then filed a missing person’s report with Baranagar police station on May 18, leading to a police investigation and the eventual discovery of his body.
The next day, Anar’s brother Enamul Haque Iman also lodged a missing person’s report with Kaliganj police station.
Anar's personal assistant, Abdur Rauf, had previously told Dhaka Tribune that the MP had been in contact with his family and party members for the first two days of his trip. “However, since Tuesday (May 14), all communication with him has been lost. He is also unreachable on WhatsApp.”
