A row between Dhaka Metropolitan Police (DMP) and National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) has erupted over a youth injured in a “police shooting”.
The argument started after NHRC Chairman Mizanur Rahman visited the youth at the Dhaka Medical College Hospital (DMCH) yesterday.
After his visit the NHRC in a press statement said the chairman of the watchdog received a complaint on November 5 that a youth was undergoing treatment in a critical condition after he was shot by police in the capital’s Mohammadpur area on October 17.
Based on the complaint, the chairman visited the hospital on November 6 to see the youth for himself.
The chairman talked to the youth named Nafis Salam, 30. He also enquired about his health condition. After that he placed his observation to journalists at the hospital.
In his observation he said the shooting of the youth was a violation of human rights and not at all accepted.
Even if anyone is guilty of a crime the person cannot be shot and it is also violation of human rights. However, the commission statement was presented incorrectly, said the statement.
As the DMP blamed the NHRC for siding with militancy for Nafis is a member of banned militant outfit Hizb-ut-Tahrir the human rights watchdog defended its stand saying that if anyone is a member of a banned organisation police have no right to shoot him.
Referring to the DMP statement issued on November 6 that reads “NHRC chairman is instigating militancy” the NHRC statement says the DMP statement is totally baseless as it misinterpreted the statement of the NHRC chairman.
On the other hand, the DMP statement said the NHRC chairman’s visit to an injured accused was unlawful as he did not take permission from the court. In a counter statement, the NHRC said it did not require any permission as it a state organisation that functions under separate laws.
Earlier after his visit to the youth at the DMCH, NHRC Chairman Mizanur Rahman on November 6 said police in a certain district did not adhere to the chain of command in the organisation nor to the country’s laws.
“Police in this particular district are consistently committing offences ignoring the chain of command taking ill-advantage of the district’s name,” he said. However, he did not mention the name of the district.
When asked about the district’s name he said: “You journalists are sharp. You know even better than me.”
The NHRC chairman went on to say that this particular district’s police were disgracing Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina with their wrongful conduct.
“No civilized country’s police can behave in such a way. Police in Bangladesh are showing arrogance and disrespect to the laws and rights of people,” he said.
At the DMCH, he visited Nafis Salam, 30, who was shot by police on October 17 afternoon during a demonstration in the capital’s Mohammadpur area. Nafis, claimed that he was protesting the controversial remarks made by former minister Abdul Latif Siddique when police suddenly intervened and opened fire on the procession.
Police also filed a case against him with Mohammadpur police station where they claimed he was a member of Hizb ut-Tahrir and had attacked police on the day of the incident.
Abdus Salam, Nafis’s father, refuted the police’s claim and said Nafis was studying MBA at Dhaka University, and before that he had graduated from Queensland University in Australia.
In response to the comment, DMP issued a press statement on the same day mentioning that the youth is a member of banned militant outfit and police opened fire in self defense.
But the NHRC chairman’s remarks went against investigation and inspired militancy. It also hampered the investigation process. His comment against a certain district hurt the sentiment of people and would give a wrong message to the world about Bangladesh’s stance on militancy, the DMP statement said.
In this regard, Monirul Islam, joint commissioner at the DMP and also its spokesperson, told the Dhaka Tribune that there was no problem with the chain of command in police, and they were performing their duties within the laws and regulations of the country.
“Before commenting on an organisation’s chain of command, a person should have a clear understanding of the chain of command first,” he said.
Masudur Rahman, deputy commissioner (media and public relation) of the DMP, yesterday said at least 17 members of police were killed in political violence of 2013. Over hundred were amputated and around 3,000 policemen were injured in that period. But the NHRC chairman did not visit the wounded policemen or the family members of the deceased cops.
“Is there no human rights of policemen? Why is he taking the side of the offenders?” asked Masud.
