L-R: Shaon and Ibrahim

Ibrahim Ahmed's brother yesterday filed a murder case with a Dhaka court against ruling party lawmaker Nurunnabi Chowdhury Shaon.
Awami League leader Ibrahim died of a gun shot near the parliament building Friday night.
The case was filed with a Dhaka court five days after the death of the Awami League activist. Ibrahim's wife Rina Islam had made several attempts to file the case with Sher-e-Bangla Nagar Police Station but it refused to record the case. Police at the station said an unnatural death case was already recorded with the station.
Ibrahim's younger brother Masum filed the case against eight named and eight to 10 unnamed people. The named accused are Shaon, his bodyguard Delwar Hossain, driver Kamal Hossain alias Kala, Mazharul Islam Mithu, Mizan, and their aides Jibon, Riton and Alam.
Accused Mithu is the owner of the microbus that carried Ibrahim's body to Dhaka Medical College Hospital and Mizan was the microbus driver.
Metropolitan Magistrate Mohammad Shahadat Hossain took the case into cognisance and stayed the proceedings of the case until the police submit the probe report of the unnatural death case.
The magistrate also asked the Detective Branch of police, investigating the matter, to submit a report on the probe progress.
Shaon's driver Kala had claimed earlier that Ibrahim, 38, an Awami League leader of Ward-56 of Dhaka City Corporation, was killed on August 14 when he was handling Shaon's licensed gun in the lawmaker's car and the gun went off.
Kala had filed the unnatural death case with the Sher-e-Bangla Nagar Police Station. Police now doubt his claims since four guards stationed only 30 yards away from the spot did not hear the gun shot.
In yesterday's case statement, Masum told the court that his brother and Shaon were involved in different political, social and development activities and they were very close. Ibrahim had campaigned for Shaon during the last by-election at Bhola-3 constituency.
Masum claimed that Shaon won the election because of his brother's contribution to his campaign.
He said Ibrahim had become more popular than Shaon in Bhola and the accused felt threatened by this. They did not want Ibrahim to succeed in his political career and that is why Shaon called him over mobile phone and asked him to forget his dream of becoming the councillor of a DCC ward, the case statement read.
They wanted him to work for Jubo League in Bhola but Ibrahim paid no heed to them, Masum said.
He said the accused killed Ibrahim then filed the unnatural death case with Sher-e-Bangla Police Station to divert the investigation to another direction.
Meanwhile, the detectives could not ascertain whether a shot was fired near Block-6 of the parliament complex Friday evening. Shaon's driver Kala claimed that the lawmaker's gun went off in his car parked there when Ibrahim was handling the licensed weapon.
Assistant Deputy Commissioner Mohammad Moniruzzaman of DB said Shaon's car was parked within 30 yards of a guards' room for the Jatiya Sangsad Bhaban where four guards were deployed.
"I went to the spot Friday night and asked the on-duty guards but none of the guards heard the gunshot," he said.
Detectives said so far they have interrogated six people in two phases over the last two days.
Kala, Mithu and his driver Mizan were interrogated Tuesday and Shaon's private secretary Sohel, bodyguards Delwar and Shaon's aide Shimul were interrogated at the DB office yesterday.
Moniruzzaman said during interrogation they found out that Mithu, Sohel and Mizan took Ibrahim to Dhaka Medical College and left him there.
He said they would not arrest the interrogated six since they have no leads against them and the court had not issued any arrest warrants against them.
Shaon in the documents submitted to the Election Commission on March 28 said he has seven criminal cases filed against him with Paltan Police Station.
CORRECTION
The first two paragraphs of our yesterday's report headlined "Mystery still shrouds Ibrahim's death" contained some errors due to a computer glitch. The paragraphs should read as follows:
Mystery over the death of Awami League activist Ibrahim Ahmed has deepened with conflicting police statements about the investigation, their refusal to record a murder case, and alleged threats from unidentified people on Ibrahim's wife if she proceeds any further in this regard.
An official of Sher-e-Bangla Nagar Police Station in the capital said on condition of anonymity yesterday that it is not possible for them to go on with the investigation, as they are under pressure from some influential quarters not to do so.