Gazipur district authorities have formed a probe committee to investigate the death of writer Mushtaq Ahmed in Kashimpur high security prison.
Gazipur Deputy Commissioner SM Tarikul Islam said on Friday that the two-member committee will check whether there was negligence in the treatment of Mushtaq.
The members of the committee are executive magistrates Md Wasiuzzaman Chowdhury and Umme Habiba Farzana. They have been given two working days to submit a report.
The 53-year-old writer, who published the book "Kumir Chaasher Diary" under the pen name Michael Kumir Thakur, was arrested by Rapid Action Battalion (RAB) from his Lalmatia home on May 2, allegedly for Facebook posts that were critical of the government's handling of the Covid-19 pandemic.
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On August 20, he was shifted to the Kashimpur prison, Gias Uddin said.
Calls for Mushtaq's release were widespread and sustained throughout his time in prison. Soon after his arrest, more than 300 dignitaries in Bangladesh issued a joint statement demanding his release, as well as the release of cartoonist Ahmed Kabir Kishore.
Amnesty International reiterated the demand in a statement as recently as January, saying the duo (Kishore and Mushtaq) had been arrested "solely for the peaceful exercise of their right to freedom of expression."
Mushtaq’s applications for bail were turned down on at least four occasions.
Also, after Mushtaq Ahmed's autopsy doctors said they did not find any apparent signs of injuries on the body.
