Santals in Gaibandha blocked the Dhaka-Rangpur Highway for an hour demanding cancellation of the charge sheet for the deadly police firing, looting, and arson attacks on the ethnic minority group about three years ago.
They protested against the exclusion of former MP Abul Kalam Azad and some other key suspects named in the case.
On 6 November 2016, the police and Rangpur Sugar Mills’ employees clashed with the Santal people over the issue of cutting sugarcane and the eviction of the indigenous people from the disputed land on the Shahebganj cane farm of the mill.
Three Santal men were killed in the clashes and 20 people, including the police, were injured in the incident.
Later, on July 28, the Police Bureau of Investigation (PBI) pressed charges against 90 people in the case.
The indigenous people from Madaripur village in Gobindaganj upazila, under the banner of Shahebgonj-Bagdafarm Bhumi Uddhar Songram Committee, brought out a rally around 12:00am on Sunday from Bagdafarm and paraded through the important thoroughfares in Shahebgonj.
Later, holding placards and banners, they staged a sit-in program at Char Matha, blocking the Dhaka-Rangpur Highway for one hour, resulting in huge tailbacks on the highway.
Terming the charge sheet “biased and manipulated,” Philimon Baske, president of the committee, said the PBI dropped the names of the main accused from the charge sheet.
“Proper investigation was not carried out for preparing the charge sheet,” he said, demanding cancellation of the charge sheet and the preparation of a fresh one with the names of the primary accused included in it.
The president said that Abul Kalam Azad, a former MP of the Gobindaganj constituency, was directly associated with the incident.
He demanded the former MP, the then managing director of Rangpur Sugar Mills, Md Abdul Awal, and some others, be included in the fresh charge sheet.
The plaintiffs in the murder case, Thomas Hembrom, said the PBI investigation report and the charge sheet were "outrageous."
Case details and history
In 1962, the Rangpur Sugar Mill acquired 1,840 acres of land for sugarcane farming in 18 villages of the Santal community and some Bangali families.
In 2015, the Santals and the local Bangalis started protests to get back their lands, saying mill authorities leased out the land for paddy and tobacco farming in violation of the acquisition contract.
In July 2016, some Santal families built houses, occupying some areas of the sugarcane farm.
On November 6 that year, sugar mill employees and police clashed with the Santals at various times over the cutting of sugarcane and land ownership.
Three Santal men were shot dead in the clashes, while over 25 others, including policemen, were injured.
Hundreds of Santal houses were looted and torched by people who were reportedly led by Nazmul Huda and Bulbul.
Following the violent clashes, police and the sugar mill authorities cleared the land, evicting the Santals.
Ten days later, Swapan Murmu, on behalf of the Santal community, filed a case with Gobindaganj police station, accusing another 600 unidentified people in the case.
Santhal Thomas Hembrom, an aggrieved party, also filed another case in which 33 persons were named.
On November 26, 2016, Thomas Hembrom filed yet another case naming 33 people — including Azad— and some 500 to 600 unidentified others.
Subsequently, a local court ordered the PBI to investigate the incident.