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Justice delayed, justice denied

3 other Aug 15 murder cases still on backburner

Chaitanya Chandra Halder and Ashutosh Sarkar
Apart from Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman and most of his family members, some other people were killed in three separate attacks on August 15, 1975, but justice is apparently denied in their cases.
Disgruntled army personnel killed Bangabandhu's nephew Sheikh Fazlul Haque Moni, founding chairman of Awami Jubo League, and his wife Arzu Moni at their Dhanmondi residence. Bangabandhu's brother-in-law Abdur Rab Serniabat, former water resources minister, was also murdered al his Minto Road residence.
A mortar attack by another group of army personnel killed 14 others in Mohammadpur, taking the death toll to 34 on that fateful day.
Three separate murder cases in connection with these killings were filed in 1996, but those are still on the backburner.
Despite several attempts, Home Minister Shahara Khatun or Slate Minister for Home Affairs Shamsul Haque Tuku could not be reached for their comments on the issue.
Talking to The Daily Star, Attorney General Mahbubey Alam said he would lake steps to get the cases disposed of.
The top stale law officer said he would soon ask the government to provide him with necessary documents to revive the cases. All cases involving the August 15 killings should be disposed of to bring the perpetrators to book, he added.
In January 2009, five condemned killers of the father of the nation were executed after a Supreme Court verdict in the Bangabandhu murder case filed in October 1996.
SHEIKH MONI KILLING
A band of 25-30 army men surrounded Sheikh Moni's house on Road 13/1 in Dhanmondi at around 1:30am on August 15.
Eight to ten of them carrying firearms and wearing black uniform went up to the first floor and got down after firing shots.
Moni's close aide Mohammad Shahabuddin,
who was on the ground floor, immediately went upstairs and found Moni and his wife Arzu lying on the floor in a critical condition.
Sheikh Maruf, Moni's younger brother, turned up there. Arzu was crying out for help and requesting to save them and their two sons -- Sheikh Fazle Shams Porosh and Sheikh Fazle NoorTaposh.
Moni and Arzu were pronounced dead on arrival at Dhaka Medical College and Hospital, read the statement of the murder case filed by Shahabuddin with Dhanmondi police on November 20,1996.
Sixteen people including former deputy minister Taheruddin Thakur were made accused in the case.
The Criminal Investigation Department (CID) gave the final report in the case on August 22, 2002 and had it secretly dismissed, ignoring legal bindings.
The Court of Chief Metropolitan Magistrate, Dhaka on December 30, 2002 accepted the final report and acquitted all the accused without notifying the complainant.
Neither the investigation officer nor the court concerned informed the complainant about the fate of the case.
SERNIABAT MURDER
A group of army personnel led by Maj Shahriar Rashid, Maj Aziz Pasha, Capt Majed and Capt Nurul Huda stormed into Serniabat's residence on Minto Road al about 5:00am.
The army personnel rounded up the residents al the drawing room on the ground floor and Shahriar
and Majed shot them.
Frightened Beauty Serniabat caught hold of her father Abdur Rab Serniabat. Shahriar Rashid, Aziz Pasha and Nurul Huda fired shots again and left the scene.
Abdur Rab Serniabat, his nephew Shaheed Serniabat, daughter Baby Serniabat, son Arif Serniabat, grandson Babu Serniabat, who was only four, domestic helps Polka and Laxmir Ma, and Abdur Naim Khan alias Rintu died on the spot.
Abul Hasnat Abdullah, son of Abdur Rab Serniabat, survived hiding behind a door.
Shahan Ara Begum, wife of Hasnat, her mother-in-law Amena Begum, brother-in-law Abul Khair Serniabat, sisters-in-law Beauty and Rina Serniabat, and domestic helps Rana, Rafiqul Islam, Lalit Das and Golam Mahmud were seriously injured, said the statement of a case filed by Shahan with Ramna police on October 21,1996.
Eighteen people were charged with murder in the case.
However, proceedings of the case were stayed by the High Court in November 1999 following a criminal revision filed by Bazlul Huda, one of the accused, against the order of charge framing.
The stay order remains in force till date. The Awami League came to power in 2009 but did not lake any initiative to vacate the stay on the case proceedings.
MOHAMMADPUR MORTAR ATTACK Mohammad Ali, a resident of Sher Shah Suri Road in Mohammadpur, woke up with wounds in his left thigh
al about 5:30am on that day. He heard sounds of mortar blasts.
Hearing cries, he went to a nearby house on Road 9 and found Rezia Begum, wife of the house owner Musa, and their daughter Nasimadead.
He went to house 196 and 197 on nearby Shahjahan Road where he saw bodies of Habibur Rahman, Anwara Begum, another woman by the same name, Moyful Bibi, Sabera Begum, Abdullah, Rafiqul, Safia Khatun, Shahabuddin, Kasheda, Aminuddin and Honufa Bibi, all killed in the mortar attack.
Later he came to know that 14 people were killed by mortar shells fired by a group of military personnel.
He also learned that Bangabandhu and most of his family members were dead, Ali said in the statement of a case he filed with Mohammadpur police on November 29,1996 accusing Syed Farooq Rahman and 10 others.
The CID pressed charges against the same accused on July 30,1997.
On November 1,2006, the court framed charges against 18 accused, including Taher Uddin Thakur, who later died, in connec-t i o n with the Mohammadpur killings.
Trial of the case began with deposition of the complainant on March 19, 2007 and statements of only four out of 58 prosecution witnesses were recorded till May 17 this year.
The case now remains pending with the Court of Fourth Additional Metropolitan Sessions Judge, Dhaka.