Locals and relatives of a mother and her two children found dead in Madhabpur of Habiganj district have pointed the finger at the woman's husband, who has been missing since the incident.
The police say they are investigating all possible angles.
The relatives of the deceased claimed that it was premeditated murder, even though, the local people initially suspected the mother of hanging herself after slitting the throats of her two children.
Police found the three bodies at midnight on Friday in Madhabpur. The deceased are- Hadisa Begum, 24, wife of the local businessmen Mujibur, their two and a half-year-old daughter Mim Akhtar and seven-month-old son, Mujahid Mia.
Sources from the police said that at around 10pm on Friday, people from the neighborhood went towards Mujibur's house when they heard no sound coming from inside. They called out after finding the door locked and did not get any response.
At one point they peeked inside the house and saw the body of Hadisa hanging and the daughter on the bed with her throat slit. They also found the slaughtered body of the son in a locked room at the back of the house.
They quickly informed the Madhabpur Police Station and police rushed to the scene and sent the bodies to Habiganj Sadar Hospital morgue for autopsy around 1am.
The husband has become the primary suspect of the case as he was still in hiding. Many locals have informed that there have been numerous arbitration trials between the husband and wife in the village as they could not get along.
A village elder Abdur Rahim said: "Hadisa and Mujibur got married in 2014. They could not get along as they always fought because of Mujibur's extreme temper and he often beat his wife."
He also said that Mujibur even beat Hadisa three days ago and claimed that the husband was the one who brutally killed Hadisa and the children.
Another villager Rahmat Ali echoed the statement and said that Mujibur has threatened to kill Hadisa many times before. He was being suspected as he was still in hiding.
Hadisa's father Shamim Mia said that it was premeditated murder. His son-in-law was the one who murdered his own wife and children and had been on run from the law, he said.
"It is impossible for a woman to kill her children by slitting their throats," he asserted.
Hadisa's brother Din Islam said that Mujibur had been abusing his sister for a long time, but she was enduring the torture because of the children.
He also claimed that Hadisa's husband killed them and ran away.
Commenting on the matter, Senior Assistant Superintendent of Police (Sr. ASP) Raju Ahmed told the Dhaka Tribune: "The bodies have been sent to the morgue for autopsy. Police are still investigating the reason behind the murder."
He also stated that the exact cause of their death could only be explained after the investigation.
