A former leader of Chhatra League Rajshahi University unit was brutally lynched in Rajshahi city on Saturday night on charge of attacking protesters on August 5 during the mass upsurge.
The deceased is Abdullah Al Masud, resident of Budhpara area of the city.
He was severely injured and later handed over to the police station. After being taken to the hospital, he died.
Boalia Model police station Officer-in-Charge (OC) SM Masud Parvez said: “Masud was attacked in connection with allegations of an assault on students and the public on August 5.”
He was initially taken to Matihar police station by a group of students.
However, as there was no case registered at Matihar police station related to the August 5 incident, Masud was later arrested under a violence case at Boalia police station.
The OC said that Masud was severely injured in the mob attack and, given his condition, was transferred to Rajshahi Medical College Hospital (RMCH) with the help of the army. But he died there. Legal actions will be taken if his family wants.
While Masud was in custody at Boalia police station, he claimed: "I had come to Binodpur to buy medicine. I was targeted because I used to be in the Chhatra League."
Salahuddin Ammar, a coordinator of the Anti-Discrimination Student Movement at RU, was present at Boalia police station when Masud was brought in. Ammar had previously brought two youths to the station in charge of raping and killing a female student on August 5.
Ammar noticed Masud being brought in but did not recognize who had brought him.
Upon hearing of Masud's death, Ammar said: "We were busy with the duo we brought in. In the midst of that, we saw someone being brought in injured, but we could not identify who had brought him. The police should have handled this situation better."
Abdullah Al Masud was a resident of Budhpara in the city. On the morning of April 29, 2014, Masud was attacked in front of Zia Hall at Rajshahi University while on his way to class.
During the attack, the lower part of Masud’s right leg was severed from the ankle, and his left leg was severely damaged. The tendons in his hand were also cut.
After losing his leg in the attack, Masud used a prosthetic leg to move around.
After being unemployed for a long period, Masud wrote a letter seeking employment to then-Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina at the end of 2022.
Following this, on December 6, 2022, Director-7 Mir Taufey Siddika of the Prime Minister’s Office requested the then Vice-Chancellor of Rajshahi University to appoint Masud to the position of Section Officer.
Following this, Masud was appointed as a store officer at the university’s medical centre on December 20, 2022.
He joined the position on December 22.
Masud had also recently become a father of a baby girl.
On Saturday, Masud posted a photo of his newborn baby on Facebook, writing: “Alhamdulillah. All praise is due to Allah the Almighty. On 3–9–2024, I have become the father of a daughter. I pray to Allah the Almighty for a long and healthy life. I ask all relatives, well-wishers, and friends for their prayers for me and my daughter.”
