The body of a Dhaka University student, who had been missing for around a week, was found at the Shaheed Minar on Saturday and was later identified at the Dhaka Medical College Hospital morgue yesterday evening.

The dead, Hafizur Rahman, was a student of 2015-16 sessions of information science and library management department.

His elder brother Habibur Rahman identified the body.

Hafizur was also the general secretary of Mime Action, a cultural organisation of the university.

According to family sources, Hafizur returned to Dhaka from Brahmanbaria on May 15, a day after the Eid, and informed his family that he reached safely.

However, from May 15 onwards, his family found his phone switched off.

After failing to communicate with him or trace his whereabouts, they filed a general diary with Brahmanbaria's Kasba Police Station.

Later, Shahbagh police was informed about Hafizur going missing.

On Sunday, Shahbagh police informed Habibur about an unidentified body being found at the Shaheed Minar on Saturday night and that they had kept the body at the DMCH morgue.

Habibur rushed to the morgue and then identified his brother's body.

According to the police report, Hafizur's body had a slit throat, and stab wounds in the face, forehead and legs.

Contacted, Habibur said, "'My brother had an accident. That's all I can say."

Mamunur Rashid, officer-in-charge of Shahbagh Police Station, told The Daily Star that around 8:30pm on Saturday, they received information that a man slit his own throat in the Shaheed Minar area after taking a crescent dagger from a coconut seller there."

After his body was discovered at Shaheed Minar, police went to the spot and took it to DMCH with the help of pedestrians. He was listed as an unidentified body.

Police filed a case in this connection, the OC said, adding, "If his family accuses anyone, the case will be investigated."

"This is very sad news," Prof Dr AKM Golam Rabbani, Dhaka University proctor, told The Daily Star.

He said the university had requested Shahbagh police to search for Hafizur after he went missing.

"It is very difficult to determine the cause of his death in such a short time. However, law enforcers will investigate the matter."