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Extrajudicial Killings

Concern mounts as govt silent

Staff Correspondent
Despite mounting concerns of rights bodies at home and abroad over the recent spate of extrajudicial killings, the government has apparently taken no step to investigate the deaths.
Since January to February 11 this year, at least 39 people were killed in gunfights, cop firing and torture in different parts of the country, say statistics of rights organisation Ain O Salish Kendra (ASK).
On top of that, in most cases of custodial death lawmen did not follow the Code of Criminal Procedure (CrPC) duly in preparing the reports.
For instance, violating the CrPC police prepared the inquest report on the death of Jamaat leader Abdul Jabbar after he had been killed in a "gunfight” between law enforcers and Jamaat- Shibir men on December 31 last year. Jabbar had been arrested the previous day.
"A magistrate must prepare the inquest report on any custodial death and shall investigate and produce a report of the apparent cause of the death," said a former inspector general of police wishinganonymity.
According to him, there remains a scope for destroying the evidence if a magistrate does not investigate the cause of a death and prepare the inquest report instantly.
Similarly, police prepared the inquest report after Jatiyatabadi Chhatra Dal leader Azharul Islam had been killed in a "shootout" in Tala upazila of Satkhira on January 26. Azharul had been arrested a day before his killing.
Meanwhile, in response to repeated requests from different quarters to launch probe into the extrajudicial killings, the government criticised those who brought such allegations and asked them to file cases.
On Tuesday, at an interview with BBC Bangla Service in London, Law Minister Anisul Haque said the government would launch probes if only specific allegations of extrajudicial killings were made.
"If there are incidents of extrajudicial killings and we get complaints and then if we find evidence, we will identify those involved in the extrajudicial killings and bring them to book," he said.
Asked why the government is not filing cases and launching probes on its own in connection with extrajudicial killings, the law minister said that was possible if a victim's family or anyone filed a case.
Interestingly, the government had previously filed suo moto cases in connection with incidents of street violence and vandalism. Police even arrested scores of people on suspicion.
Contradicting the law minister, criminal law expert Khurshid Alam Khan said the government has more responsibilities in cases of extrajudicial killing.
"The government must file a case as soon as possible so that the trial of an extrajudicial killing can be held," he said, adding that it would help the government ensure transparency and remain vigilant.
Kazi Rezaul Hoque, full-time member of National Human Rights Commission, also said the government could launch investigations into such killings on its own since allegations had been brought.
Meanwhile, the home ministry claimed that it did not launch any probe into the incidents, as none of the victim's family or anyone had filed any formal allegation.
Senior Home Secretary CQK Mustaq Ahmed told The Daily Star that they had not found any allegation of extrajudicial killing or forced disappearance.
"We will consider such allegations," he said.
Additional Home Secretary Kamal Uddin Ahmed also said they had received no reports of extrajudicial killing.
“The government has adopted zero tolerance for extrajudicial killing. Tough action will be taken if any lawman is found involved in such act, ” he added.
Before the 2008 parliamentary elections, the Awami League in its manifesto had pledged to bring an end to extrajudicial killing if voted to power. But in the 2014 election manifesto it dropped the point.
According to ASK statistics, extra-judicial killings had declined since 2009, but those shot up sharply last year.
In 2009, the number of extrajudicial killings stood at 229 while in 2010 at 133, in 2011 at 100, in 2012 at 91 and in 2013 it was 208, say the ASK report.
Since extrajudicial killings began in 2001, the country witnessed the highest number of such incidents in 2005 and 2006 when the numbers of such killings were 377 and 362 respectively.