Three policemen have been accused of causing serious damage to the eyes of a Jubo Dal worker in Ramganj of Lakshmipur by torturing him for two days while in custody.
The victim is Saiful Islam Sumon, 32, son of Shamsul Islam Patwary of Changirga village under Ichhapur union, while the alleged lawmen are Md Lokman Hossain, officer-in-charge of Ramganj police station, Sharif Hossain and Mohiuddin. Sharif and Mohiuddin are assistant sub-inspectors.
Sumon was arrested on August 7 but no relative or journalist was allowed to meet him. He was brought to court in a police van the following afternoon, but was unable to fully open his eyes and see clearly. He also bore marks of injury in several parts of his body.
Sharif, Mohiuddin and Lokman have done this to me and they damaged my eyes with needle, Sumon told reporters.
“I was tortured for two days as I did not work for the local lawmaker in the last election and also because I am a Jubo Dal activist,” he claimed.
Earlier on April 19 and 21, police allegedly sent both of Sumon’s sons Rafiqul Islam Robin and Md Sujon to jail by implicating them in four false cases.
“Soon after his appointment, Lokman began making attempts to detain my son. He also harassed me and threatened me several times having failed to nab Sumon. Robin and Sujon were named accused in four false cases and were sent behind bars,” Shamsur said.
“I work as an imam at a mosque. I urged the local lawmaker, upazila chairman and other influential figures in the area to help me secure the release of my grandchildren but to no avail. Now they have damaged the eyes of my son. I demand justice,” he added.
My husband is involved in printing press and jhut (garment waste) trades in Dhaka, said Sumon’s wife Simu Aktar.
“He came home from Dhaka on the night of August 6. The following noon, Jubo League worker Liton Hazari invited him to his [Liton] place, made him take sedatives with food, put a firearm in his hand and called police,” she said.
“They [police] beat Sumon there mercilessly, took him to police station and resumed the beating. They also inflicted severe damage on both his eyes. We went to police station but could not meet him. He had to endure this as he did not work in favour of the local parliamentarian in the last election,” she added.
The victim’s wife demanded judicial inquiry into the incident.
Wishing anonymity, several local journalists said Sumon was kept in the investigation room of the police station, and they were barred from talking to him.
Lokman, however, denied all the allegations, terming them false.