They were forced into death’s lap in the holy night. There was supposed to be peace in the surroundings. In the tranquil darkness when many were engaged in calling the Almighty for peace, prosperity, and pardon, while others dozed off to slumber after meditation, the monsters in human form appeared from nowhere and swooped on the members of a family, locked them up in a shack, and set it on fire. The raging fury filled the dawn with atomic fear. Neighbours stood right in the middle of a nightmare.
All nine inside were baked to death, mostly women and children. What could be more tragic than the image of the young and worn-out father clinging to the charred remains of his little playful kid? What could be left of his world is anybody’s guess. Humanity stands unmoved.
The Mirpur mayhem, or the Shab-e-Barat arson that took place right under the muzzle of the public and powerful quarters, is yet another instance of the ferocity of vengeance that is alive in some people.
Reports say the local ruling party activists went to the Bihari camp and asked for an illegal power line connection for a slum nearby which housed Bengalis. The slum in question was run by the influential quarters of the area. When the Biharis refused to abide by their request, all hell broke loose.
In the follow-up of the heated exchanges and threats trade, the grisly acts took place. Nine members of a family had to die a painful death vanishing in the flame. It wasn’t a peaceful death for anyone.
The Biharis blamed the local MP for the murder. They accused the lawmaker of his complicity in the killings and violence. They even refused to receive his aid. He had to run from the scene to escape their wrath.
Most astonishing was the noticeable absence of state officials after such a gruesome act. When the news spread like wildfire, the nation was informed about another dreadful killing, this time, of entirely different nature and cause.
Most shocking and beyond comprehension was how this killing was planned and carried out. The victims who were seared alive in the flames had nothing to do with the earlier event. These hapless victims were nowhere near the deal or bargain of the conflicting parties.
As expected, the ministers concerned, government officials, and the police officials should have visited the place, if for nothing, at least to console the grieving ones, who had to part with their dear ones so brutally.
Whether the “request” or demand for the power line from the Bihari camp was legitimate or not is another matter. Whether they should have been given the connection is an issue that needs a query. In order to make things happen in a peaceful manner, the local leaders and concerned persons could have attempted a peaceful deal. Law enforcing members should have been brought in to work out a formula.
We know these killings will have no answer. We are used to see things heating up and suddenly the fever coming down, only to be forgotten soon. The law will take up the matter however slow the proceedings might be.
There will be the usual demand for the nabbing of the culprits. There might be one or two arrests. And it will soon be business as usual till the next bomb is dropped elsewhere and the nation’s focus is shifted.
Away in India, Nur Hossain was reportedly arrested by the Kolkata police and now under the process of law of the land. We understand that he has been picked up along with his two accomplices.
Look at the pictures splashed across our dailies. The prime accused of the seven murders in Narayanganj is all smiles, as though mocking us over his successful escape.
We don’t know what his fate would be. We want him to be brought back from India and put on trial and meted out the appropriate penalty he deserves.
And then we have the serpents of the formalin world, another dark chamber of the gangland dons. The formalin mafias are so strong that it appears impossible for anyone to spot or catch them. They operate in darkness, under protection of the more powerful.
Kings of ruination have been flourishing, reaching the farthest corner of the country. They have their “formalin agents” and “selling outlets” both handy and effective. Such is the permeation. They revel every second of their success in destroying the human body and mind.
We are in a virtual grip of the outlaws of the land. The desperation and lust for wealth and power has reached such a peak that utterly mindless, perverted, and sinful acts have become their normal mode of operation and code of conduct.
The outlaws, big and small, must be reined in from every tier of the society. People’s authority shall make it possible. The tyranny of outlaws should go.
