The Mirpur tea stall owner who was severely burnt in an alleged police assault on Wednesday succumbed to his injuries at Dhaka Medical College Hospital yesterday, with his family claiming that the law enforcers were trying to protect their colleagues after the incident.
The family members of victim Babul Matabbor told the Dhaka Tribune that the law enforcers had forced them to file an attempted murder case without mentioning the names of any police personnel.
Babul’s son Monir Hossain Raju said that before dying, his father had managed to identify Sub-Inspector Shreedham Chandra Halder and a police informant named Delowar Hossain as some of those involved in the attack.
Five members of Shah Ali police station were withdrawn yesterday while the DMP formed two probe bodies to look into the matter.
Apart from blaming the police for being directly involved in setting fire to Babul’s body, the family also criticised the police’s role in the aftermath of the incident.
They claimed that the police had denied a severely injured Babul medical treatment and detained him at the police station for around an hour, before finally letting him go seek attention from doctors.
Attempt to cover up
When the victim’s daughter, Rukhsana, went to Shah Ali police station to file a case Wednesday night, officials there allegedly refused to record the case that would accuse some of their own colleagues.
Rukhsana said that the police members had instead forced the family to file an attempted murder case against some local drug traders and a police informant.
Officer-in-Charge Shahin Mondol denied the claims that any member of the police station were involved with the assault.
Asked why the DMP had withdrawn five police members from the station, the OC said that it was done to make the investigation smoother, and so that they could not influence the probe.
The law enforcers withdrawn yesterday are Sub-Inspector Shreedham, SI Mominur Rahman, SI Niaz Uddin Mollah, Assistant Sub-Inspector Jogendranath and constable Jashim Uddin.
The attempted murder case accuses an alleged drug trader named Parul as the main accused, while the other accused are police informant Delowar and Parul’s associates Aiyub Ali, Dulal Hawlader, Robin, Shankar and Parvin. Police sources said that they had already arrested Parul.
The police also formed two committees – one led by Additional Deputy Commissioner (Mirpur division) Masud Ahmed and the other by Deputy Commissioner (Discipline) of DMP Tutul Chakrabarty – to investigate the incident.
Deputy Commissioner Kaimuzzaman told the Dhaka Tribune that the two-member zonal team was asked to submit the probe report within two working days and the DMP team within three working days.
Home Minister Asaduzzaman Khan Kamal emerging from a programme also claimed that no police members were involved in the incident. “Rather, a police informant was involved in the incident. It occurred due to a feud over drug selling,” alleged the minister, terming it a stray incident.
‘Death part of conspiracy’
Babul’s son Raju said that the death of his father was a part of conspiracy as Babul had long been protesting the drug trade of Parul, who operated her business beside the tea stall owner’s house in Block H of Mirpur 1.
Babul had asked Parul – who lives beside his house – to stop her drug trade in the area as the addicts regularly came to his tea stall looking for cannabis and even went inside his house, threatening the safety of his daughters.
Raju said that Parul and her associates had threatened his father, saying the police would never come to his aid as the drug dealers had a good arrangement with the law enforcers.
Last month, the police tried to detain Babul in a false case, but decided to let him go after the family bribed them, Raju said.
What happened on Wednesday
Around 9pm on Wednesday, three police members went to Babul’s tea stall, accompanied by informant Delowar, who is also an associate of the local drug peddlers.
Delowar demanded money from Babul and grabbed his hand to pull him out of the stall. At that time, Babul was pouring kerosene into a stove.
During the scuffle, a constable allegedly hit the stove with his truncheon, which then fell on Babul and set him on fire. Instead of trying to douse the blaze, the police members fled the scene immediately, Raju said.
To make matters worse, the police members then took Babul to the police station instead of a hospital. By the time the family was allowed to rush Babul to Dhaka Medical College Hospital, two-and-a-half hours had already passed.
Partha Shangkar Paul, residential surgeon of the DMCH burn unit, said that despite the best efforts from the doctors, the patient did not survive as he had received 90% burn injuries.
