Blood of the innocents

WHAT happened to Aminul Islam Kamal is not far from sad, it is reprehensible. When the police start shooting right, left and centre in an attempt to contain an opposition programme, innocent bystanders like Aminul get caught in the melee and pay the price of being in the wrong place at the wrong time. Who will bear the responsibility of taking care of Aminul's family should he not survive the multiple gunshot wounds he suffered at close range? He is not the first to suffer such trauma and we suspect, given the ferocity being meted out by law enforcers in an effort to stamp out any visible opposition programme on the streets, will cases like Aminul's be the last.

The blame game between law enforcers and organisers of the march continue on who shot first. We can spend days debating on which side is to blame, but that hardly helps matters. What matters is that despite multiple surgeries, doctors are still not confident whether Aminul will survive the gruesome injuries sustained. Even more astonishing is that the police allegedly delayed Aminul's transfer to the hospital citing legalities that he was involved in the violence. Witnesses state otherwise. There are set rules that allow for police to open fire on a crowd. But today we are witnessing a high disregard for human rights and safety when it comes to police action. The government must step into bear Aminul's medical expenditure on the one hand and rein in on the trigger-happy police against unarmed civilians on the other.