Male nurses too partners in crime

Several male nurses (medical assistants) of Bangladesh Rifles took up arms and helped others in killing and dumping the bodies during the bloody mutiny at the headquarters on February 25-26 last year.
A case was filed yesterday with the BDR Special Court-6 against 256 members of the BDR hospital unit in the force's HQ in Pilkhana.
Medical assistant of this unit nayek subedar Md Nannu Mia filed the case with the three-member court headed by BDR Director General M Mainul Islam. The other members of the court are Lt Col Md Nurul Alam and Maj Md Ali Mustain Khan.
Taking the case into cognisance, the court ordered the prosecution to produce the 256 accused before it at 10:00am today.
The male nurses, number of which could not be known, might not have killed or tortured officers of their own unit. But they indeed took up arms with the mutineers and helped them kill officers of other units.
Many of them played an active role to remove bodies from Darbar Hall. They took the bodies on trucks and pickup vans and also played a leading role to dump those in a mass grave besides the mortuary of the BDR hospital to destroy evidence.
Ninety of the accused were arrested last year in connection with a case for killing, looting and arson. They have been shown arrested in this mutiny case and the court also ordered to arrest the rest who are still serving at the hospital unit.
Lt Col Dr SMA Al-Muid of the hospital gave a brief but pathetic description to the court about atrocities during the mutiny in which 57 army officers including four doctors were killed.
The entire courtroom fell silent as he described how the mutineers brutally beat up male and female doctors even using rifles, kicked them, took them away at gunpoint, threatened them with death, detained them for long, killed officers in front of them, and shot wife of a civil doctor.
Doctors Brig Gen Md Zakir Hosain, Lt Col Kazi Rabi Rahman, Lt Col Lutfur Rahman Khan and Maj SM Mamunur Rahman were killed by mutineers of other units.
Muid was describing the atrocities in a flood of tears. Some male and female doctors, who were victims of the atrocities, were crying silently. President of the court Brig Gen Mainul himself became emotional and was seen wiping his tears.
"Today the court has turned very hard for me. I have heard the stories of atrocities in the World War II. I have seen the atrocities of Pakistani occupation forces in 1971. Now I am listening brutality of the February 25," Gen Mainul said in a choked voice.
He added those who were humiliated during the mutiny and came to the court are brave. "I would like to show my respect to them as they are still in the same service though they were harassed by this force," he said.
He observed sometimes it gets very difficult for him to separate his double identities -- one as the DG and another as the court's president. "The court is not to take revenge but to ensure justice for all," he pointed out.
He also said sorry to all in the courtroom for becoming little emotional.
He also expressed his disappointment saying, "I cannot bring my subordinate officer [a deputy assistant director] into book. I cannot try under this law [BDR Act, 1972] the main planner and the person who issued orders to the accused."
DAD Jalil of the hospital unit, who is behind bars, played a key role in the mutiny. But the special court is not empowered to try any department officer.
DAD Jalil was one of the 15-member delegation that went to meet the prime minister at her former official residence Jamuna to negotiate their demands during the mutiny.
Accused subedar Abdus Sobhan Hawlader from other unit was admitted in the hospital as a skin cancer patient. But on February 25 he came out from the hospital and took part in the mutiny.
Habilder Humayun Kabir of 18 Rifle Battalion was in the hospital as attendant of his ailing wife. He left behind his wife and wanted to burn the bodies of slain officers using sprit of the hospital.
Mutineers from other battalions shot Runa Laila, wife of a civil doctor, and also kicked her on the bullet wound. They also tortured civil doctor Hosain Ahmed and damaged his right eye.
Deputy Attorney General Kazi Ezarul Haque was sitting besides the president of the court to help him as representative of the attorney general.
Commanding officer of hospital unit Lt Col Abdul Salam was present in the court but refrained from being the prosecutor as he himself was tortured by the mutineers.
Advocates Mosharraf Hosain Kajal, Manzur Mohammad Shahnewaz Tipu and Rezaul Karim were present as special prosecutors.