Six-month-old Araf can crawl and has only begun to utter a few broken words. He is too young to understand that his father Riaz Uddin Topu will never return home to embrace him with love.
On February 20, the family celebrated Topu’s birthday and second wedding anniversary. Two days later, BBA final-year student Topu was run over and killed by a reckless police vehicle in Dhaka.
A grief-stricken environment has grasped his family since then. Araf’s mother could barely speak. “Araf’s father has gone to the land of no return. He will never celebrate birthdays and wedding anniversaries again,” his family and friends lamented at his East Tejturi Bazar residence in Farmgate.
The janaza of Topu, an ASA University student, was held on yesterday afternoon. He will be buried at his village home in Gazipur’s Salna.
Topu, who worked at mobile company ‘Oppo’, was on his motorbike when a police requisitioned minibus without a number plate hit him, killing him on the spot. His colleague Rathin Sarker was with him. “He would not have died had I not asked for a ride,” Rathin said as his voice chocked.
He said he was late for the launching of a new product at Radisson hotel and requested Topu for a ride. But the police vehicle, speeding on the wrong side, hit them. Topu and his motorbike fell under the wheels. “Topu could have been saved had the police bus stopped,” he added. “Several pedestrian came forward and rushed us to hospital but police did nothing.”
Topu’s childhood friend Golam Samdani Sajib said he had rushed to the spot on hearing about the accident. “We had an altercation with police. They beat us up before briefly detaining us,” he added.
Tipu’s elder brother Haris Mohammad said he had filed a case with Banani police over the incident. He recalled that their sister had also died in a road accident in 2000. “And now my brother is gone...”
ASA students block road
Agitated students of ASA University took to the streets in Shyamoli in the afternoon demanding to bring the killers to book. Mohammadpur police OC Jamal Uddin Mir said they cleared the key road around 2pm.
Meanwhile, Waheduzzaman, Inspector (Investigation) of Banani police station told Dhaka tribune that police arrested the bus driver Julfiker Mollik. A Dhaka court granted police two days to interrogate him.