Rescued Zakiganj councillor still mute

Two days after missing Zakiganj municipality councillor Shakil was rescued, police are still clueless about the people and the reason behind his alleged abduction.

Shahab Uddin Tapadar Shakil, 30, is undergoing treatment at Sylhet MAG Osmani Medical College Hospital, and still not being able to speak, due to unknown reasons.

Councillor Shakil, also convenor of Zakiganj town Jubo League, went traceless after he left home around 10pm on Friday. Four days later, he was found from under a bridge on the Dhaka-Sylhet Highway at Bariura area of Sarail in Brahmanbaria. His hands and legs were tied with rope when he was found by locals and rescued by police. He could not speak at the time, and wrote his name on a paper to identify himself, before losing consciousness.

He was brought back to Sylhet that evening and was admitted at the Neurosurgery ward of Sylhet MAG Osmani Medical College Hospital.

Dr. Mahfuz Ahmed, duty doctor of the ward, said that no severe physical injury has been found on his body, and doctors are now diagnosing him for internal brain injuries.

“He is almost speechless, maybe out of injury or trauma. In the morning (yesterday), senior doctors tried to make him talk, but he just mumbled a little,” he said.

This correspondent tried to talk to Councillor Shakil at the hospital. He could not speak but nodded when asked whether he is recognising everyone around him.

His brother, Selim Ahmed, said that Shakil had a longstanding rivalry with a local named Shihab Uddin, who threatened to kill him a couple of days before the disappearance.

“We suspect that he might be behind the abduction and we will file a case against him soon”, he said.

Shihab Uddin, general secretary of Zakiganj Krira Sangstha did not respond to repeated phone calls for comments.

Kollol Goshwami, investigation officer of the case and sub-inspector of Zakiganj Police Station, said the rivalry between the councillor and Shihab Uddin has been going on for a long time, but it did not escalate to the level that might cause the incident.

Md. Mostak Sarker, Additional Superintendent of Sylhet District Police (Zakiganj, Beanibazar Circle), said, “We are considering all possible reasons behind the abduction. As Zakiganj is a new zone for drug smuggling, we are also considering that. We hope to make progress in the case soon.”