Abdullah Al Jaber, member secretary of Inqilab Mancha and the plaintiff in the case, on Thursday filed an objection to the chargesheet submitted by the Detective Branch (DB) police in the murder case of Inqilab Mancha spokesperson Sharif Osman Hadi.
The objection was filed in the court of Dhaka Additional Chief Metropolitan Magistrate Jashita Islam on Thursday afternoon.
Lawyer Mostafizur Rahman Mukul, representing the plaintiff, said the investigation officer had submitted the chargesheet merely to fulfil procedural obligations. “The chargesheet does not mention the link between the masterminds of the murder and the shooters who carried it out,” he said.
He added that Hadi was not an ordinary individual and that the murder must have involved a larger plan. “He was shot dead in public to create fear so that no one else dares to speak out against fascism and hegemony the way Hadi did,” the lawyer told the court.
The lawyer further said the chargesheet mentions an Awami League ward councillor as being involved, which he termed “ridiculous.”
“A ward councillor alone would not dare to commit such a crime. There was clearly a bigger plan. That is why we have objected to this chargesheet,” he said.
He also questioned the investigation’s credibility, noting that only Faisal was shown as the main perpetrator and that cheques were seized from him. “What kind of investigation is this? How did he escape safely after committing a murder in broad daylight? Who helped the planner and the killer flee? None of this has been mentioned in the chargesheet,” he added.
The lawyer said Sharif Osman Hadi repeatedly spoke about the need for justice and would have demanded justice even if he himself had been killed. “In the interest of justice, we have raised this objection. The court is now awaiting an order,” he said.
On January 6, DB Police Inspector Faisal Ahmed, the investigation officer, submitted a chargesheet against 17 people in the case. On January 12, the plaintiff appeared before the court and sought time until Thursday to review the chargesheet. The court fixed Thursday for a hearing on the admissibility of the chargesheet.
According to the chargesheet, the main accused are Faisal Karim Masud alias Daud, his associate Alamgir Hossain, Dhaka Metropolitan North Jubo League organising secretary and former ward councillor Taijul Islam Chowdhury Bappi, Philip Snal Phillips, Mukti Akhter and Faisal’s sister Jasmine Akhter. They are currently absconding.
The remaining 11 accused are in jail. They include Faisal Karim Masud’s father Md Humayun Kabir, mother Hasi Begum, wife Shaheda Parvin Samia, friend Maria Akhter Lima, brother-in-law Wahid Ahmed Sipu, rent-a-car businessman Mufti Md Nuruzzaman Nomani alias Ujjwal, close aide Md Kabir, Sibion Diu, Sanjay Chisim, Md Aminul Islam alias Raju and Md Faisal, who was arrested with weapons in Narsingdi.
The investigation officer has sought arrest warrants against the six absconding accused named in the chargesheet.
According to the case details, Sharif Osman Hadi formed the political and cultural platform Inqilab Manch after the coup and was serving as its spokesperson. On December 12, at around 2:20pm, assailants on a motorcycle shot him in the Box Culvert Road area under Paltan Model Police Station and fled.
Hadi sustained critical injuries to his head and lower right ear. He was first taken to Dhaka Medical College Hospital and later shifted to Evercare Hospital. As his condition worsened, he was flown to Singapore by air ambulance on December 15 for advanced treatment, where he died on December 18.
Following the shooting, Abdullah Al Jaber filed an attempted murder case with Paltan Police Station on December 14, which was later converted into a murder case after Hadi’s death.
