BNP men sued as youth dies in 'gunfight'

Several leaders of BNP, Jubo Dal and Chhatra Dal have been accused in the case filled by police in connection with death of a youth in an alleged gunfight at Raghurampur in Jessore Sadar upazila early Sunday.

Sub-Inspector Nurun Nabi of Jessore Kotwali Police Station filed the case accusing 20 people, mostly leaders and activists of BNP.

However, their political identity was not mentioned in the FIR. The accused include Munir Ahmed Siddiqui Bachhu (municipality BNP general secretary), Badiuzzaman Dhoni (municipality Jubo Dal general secretary), Ansarul Haque Rana (general secretary of district Jubo Dal), Sumon (former president of Chachra Madhyapara), Sohel Chowdhury and Sumon Chowdhury, sons of district BNP leader Eko Chowdhury of Chachra Raipara area in the district town.

"Informed that two groups of criminals were locked in a gunfight at Raghurampur village, police went there around 3:40am on Sunday," says the FIR filed by police after the alleged gunfight.

"We found the body of a man, aged around 35 years, lying beside the boundary wall of a house at the village. There were wounds on the left side of his forehead and right side of head. It seems he died of bullet injuries.

"One shooter gun, one bullet, five cartridges and five machetes were recovered from the spot. Primary  investigation reveals that fugitive accused Faruq Hossain and Sumon were locked in a clash over establishing supremacy. Police came to know the names of other of the two groups later," goes the FIR.

Expressing surprise over the case filing, Jessore district BNP General Secretary Syed Saberul Haque Sabu said, "Our leaders and activists have been subjected to imprisonment and torture in various false cases during the last nine years. But we could not imagine that police would implicate our party men in cases for incidents like gunfight."