He was injured during a factional clash of Chhatra League, the ruling party’s student wing, on the Dhaka University campus on February 2, 2010 and died the following day while undergoing treatment at a hospital.
After the death of Abu Bakar Siddique, the university authorities formed a probe committee and upon its recommendation expelled 10 students, including then president of Chhatra League’s hall unit Saiduzzaman Faruk.
Another high-powered committee, led by a house tutor, was formed afterwards; but it has not submitted any report as yet.
Abdul Sattar, then provost of the hall, told the Dhaka Tribune: “I did get any report in this regard.”
The clash took place between the supporters of two groups led by then president and general secretary of AF Rahman Hall unit. Siddique was a third year student of Islamic history and culture department.
Following the incident, police arrested eight Chhatra League men including Saiduzzaman the same day.
A second year student of the hall, Omar Faruk, filed a case with Shahbagh police the following day naming 14 persons including the eight arrestees.
But the police failed to arrest the six other accused while the arrestees released after a few days.
Some of the accused have now been engaged in government and private jobs while some others completed graduation from the university despite being expelled for indefinite period.
Saiduzzaman, the prime accused, is now working at Narsingdi UNC Jute Mill; Faisal is continuing studies; Rakib has completed MBA; Kayes is the incumbent vice-president of the hall unit Chhatra League; Alal is now doing masters in sociology department; Roni completed graduation and now working as a senior officer of Bangladesh Krishi Bank; Alamgir has completed LLB and LLM; after completing BBA and MBA, Tushar is now working with a private firm; while Anamul has also acquired LLB and LLM degrees.
While talking to the Dhaka Tribune, Omar Faruk said trial of the case was stuck at the court. “The accused are now trying to solve the matter out of the court.”
On September 15, 2004, Jatiyatabadi Chhatra Dal leader Mahabubul Islam Khokon was critically injured in an intra-party clash on the campus. He succumbed to his injuries three days later.
The two probe bodies, one by the university authorities and another by the hall administration, were formed over the incident. But they have not submitted reports until date.
Two cases were filed with Shahbagh police accusing 21 people. Police are yet to arrest Shoeb, the main accused, while the others are now moving freely on the campus. Some of the accused were awarded position in the organisation’s central committee and the university unit.
Seeking anonymity, one of the accused told the Dhaka Tribune that the case had been solved in 2008-09 through negotiation since it was an internal clash.
“All the accused of the murder case have completed graduation from the university and most of them are now engaged in jobs,” he said.
Chhatra League leader Partho Pratim Acaharya was killed on April 23, 1998. A case was filed the next day by then DU unit president Bahadur Bepari against several Chhatra Dal leaders including Sahiduddin Chowdhury Annie, then president of Chhatra Dal, and Habib-un-Nabi Sohel, then the general secretary of the BNP’s student wing.
Other accused in the case were Jakir Hossain (then president of Zia Hall unit) and Asad (then organising secretary of the DU unit).
Police arrested Annie, now BNP’s student affairs secretary, and several others but they were released a few days later.
In 1999, two students – Monir Hossain and Firoz – were killed in different clashes. However, cases filed over the incidents never get to the trial stage.
Acknowledging slow or no progress in the political murder cases, Vice-Chancellor Prof Arefin Siddique said the authorities were working to bring all the incidents of killings and violence under trial to stop recurrence.
