Gaibandha MP Liton: Political ambition behind killing
It was an ex-MP's “political ambition” that cost Awami League lawmaker Manzurul Islam Liton his life, according to police.
Col (retd) Abdul Kader Khan, former Jatiya Party lawmaker from Gaibandha-1, masterminded the plot to kill Liton to fulfil his political ambition to get elected from the constituency again, they say.
Speaking at a Meet the Press at the office of Gaibandha superintendent of police, Khandker Golam Faruq, deputy inspector general of police of Rangpur Range, said Kader was the mastermind behind Liton murder, and he had been planning for a year to kill him.
The DIG said police arrested three persons who took part in the murder. They are Kader's driver Abdul Hannan, and caretakers of his house Shaheen Mia and Mehedi Hasan.
The arrestees gave confessional statements before a court, and Kader was arrested on the basis of those, Faruq said.
He further said Kader lured them into committing the crime by offering money, and had them trained on how to operate firearms at a warehouse for six months.
Liton's family members couldn't be reached for comments.
With the help of Bogra police on Tuesday, a team of Gaibandha police arrested Kader, a physician by profession, at his residence-cum-clinic in Rahmannagar area of Bogra town.
Yesterday, the Additional Chief Judicial Magistrate's Court in Gaibandha placed Kader on a 10-day remand after police produced him before it.
Public Prosecutor Shafiqur Rahman told journalists, “Police sought the court's permission to take Kader Khan on a 10-day remand, and the court accepted the remand prayer.”
On December 31 last year, Liton was killed by unknown assailants who opened fire on him inside his home in Gaibandha's Sundarganj upazila.
Later, Liton's sister Tahmida Akhter Kakoli filed a murder case with Sundarganj Police Station against four to five unknown persons.
Following the murder, law enforcers and ruling party lawmakers speculated that religious extremists might be behind the killing.
Talking to The Daily Star yesterday, the DIG said they had not yet found involvement of religious extremists in the murder.
“After the killing, we said we kept all the aspects in mind. Now we have found that Kader Khan did this using his men. We haven't so far found any involvement of religious extremists [in the killing].”
He claimed that Kader got Liton killed to “clear his obstacles to getting elected in the next parliamentary elections”.
After Liton's death, Gaibandha-1 constituency fell vacant. The by-polls would be held on March 22.
Kader, who is from Paschim Chaparhati village in Gaibandha's Sundarganj upazila, collected nomination papers to contest the by-election but didn't submit those.
He was elected from the parliamentary seat as a candidate of the AL-led grand alliance in the 2008 general elections. Kader used to publish a newspaper -- Dainik Uttorer Khobor -- from Bogra.
Talking to The Daily Star, Kader's family members said they suspected that he would be arrested any time as police personnel had been deployed around their house since Thursday evening.
The deployment came after Kader collected the nomination papers. Most of the law enforcers, however, left the area after Kader announced that he would not submit the papers.
Asked, SP Ashraful Alam said on Tuesday that police were deployed there to provide security to Kader as he had collected nomination papers for the by-polls.
THE KILLING MISSION
Kader had planned to kill Liton in October last year but failed, DIG Faruq told journalists.
According to the plan, Liton's car would be hit by a vehicle from behind, and when he would get down from his car, shots would be fired at him. But that plan went in vein.
Then, another plot was hatched to murder Liton, and this time it worked.
On December 31 evening, Mehedi, Shaheen and Hannan -- none of whom is a professional killer -- carried out the mission. Mehedi fired five shots at Liton, leaving him dead at his home.
The trio entered Liton's house, saying they had an urgent matter to discuss with him. Entering the room, Mehedi opened fire. As Liton tried to stop Mehedi, the bullet hit his hand.
Failing to hit where he intended to with his first shot, Mehedi grew nervous. He then closed his eyes and started firing indiscriminately.
After killing Liton, they escaped on a black motorbike. They abandoned it after reaching the main road where Kader's car was parked. They later went to Bogra, and took shelter in Kader's house. From there, they travelled to Dhaka by bus, and went into hiding with Kader's help, said the police official.
The motorbike used by the trio was registered in Kader's name. Police seized it.
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