The High Court yesterday ordered police to record a case against three policemen for the murder of Ashulia tea vendor Md Ripon Miah in police custody in May this year.
Ripon, 26, of Jamgora area in Ashulia, was killed allegedly in police torture for ransom on May 21. Police have since claimed that he had died in a road accident.
Ripon’s wife Sathi Akter alleged that they were crossing a road at Nabinagar, Savar, around 10:30pm on May 21 when police picked her husband. Then they demanded Tk1,000 from Sathi for Ripon’s release.
Sathi said she tried to arrange the amount, but the next day she was informed that Ripon had been admitted to Gonoshasthaya Kendra Hospital. She rushed to the hospital only to find her husband dead.
The High Court asked the Ashulia police station officer-in-charge to accept the murder case against Assistant Sub-Inspector Md Anwar Hossain and constables Md Ruhul Amin and Md Imdadul Huq of the police station.
The HC bench of Justice Quazi Reza-Ul Hoque and Justice Abu Taher Md Saifur Rahman also asked the superintendent of police in Dhaka and the Ashulia OC to submit a probe report on the incident by December 9.
The orders came as rights organisation Ain O Salish Kendra placed a written statement of Ripon’s father about his son’s death.