Quick action after High Court order
Police yesterday took off the handcuffs of three injured Santal men who were arrested in a case over the November 6 clash in Gaibandha's Gobindaganj, hours after the High Court directed the police to immediately free them from handcuffs.
Choron Soren, Bimal Kisku and Dijen Tudu are now undergoing treatment at two hospitals in Rangpur and Dhaka.
Choron, 52, and Bimal, 38, were hit by bullets in their legs and were admitted to Rangpur Medical College College Hospital (RMCH) on November 6, while 36-year-old Dijen was referred to National Institute of Ophthalmology in Dhaka with eye injuries.
The HC yesterday also asked the Dhaka Metropolitan Police (DMP) commissioner, deputy inspector general (DIG Rangpur) of police and Gaibandha superintendent of police (SP) to submit a report to it by November 16 after complying with the order.
The court issued a rule asking the authorities concerned to explain in 10 days why cuffing of Choron, Bimal and Dijen during the treatment should not be declared illegal.
The home secretary, inspector general of police, DMP commissioner, DIG (Rangpur) of police, and Gaibandha SP were made the respondents to the rule.
The HC bench of Justice Obaidul Hassan and Justice Krishna Debnath came up with the order and rule in response to a writ petition filed by Supreme Court lawyer Jyotirmoy Barua, seeking its order upon the government to take the three men's handcuffs off.
The lawyer moved the HC following a report run by The Daily Star on November 13 under the headline “Santal man being treated with hand cuffed, tied”.
Our Rangpur correspondent reports: Police took off handcuffs of Choron and Bimal around 1:00pm.
Choron and his wife Pani Soren broke down in tears soon after he was freed from handcuffs.
On Sunday evening, Awami League leaders, led by Khalid Mahmud Chowdhury, organising secretary (Rajshahi division), visited the two injured at the RMCH and inquired about their treatment. The leaders directed the doctors not to neglect their treatment.
Tipu Munshi, AL finance and planning secretary, and Mozammel Haque, organising secretary (Rangpur division), were present.
Condemning the attack on the ethnic minority people of Madarpur, Joypur, Sahebganj and Horinmari areas in Gobindaganj upazila of Gaibandha, the AL leaders said the government would form a probe committee to identify the culprits behind the attack.
The state would bear the treatment expenses of the injured, they added.
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