Govt asked to explain in 10 days
The High Court yesterday issued a rule upon the government to explain in 10 days why it should not be directed to punish the people including law enforcers liable for the loss of lives of six students in Aminbazar early Monday.
In response to a writ petition, the court in the rule also asked the officials concerned to explain why they should not be directed to compensate the families of the victims beaten to death.
It asked why inaction and failure of the law enforcers concerned should not be declared illegal and unconstitutional.
The HC bench of Justice Farid Ahmed and Justice Sheikh Hassan Arif came up with the rule following a writ filed by Advocate Tajul Islam, secretary general of National Forum for Protection of Human Rights.
Tajul filed the petition yesterday following reports published and broadcast in different media stating that the six were brutally killed in Aminbazar by mass beating on mere suspicion that they were robbers.
The petitioner prayed to the court to issue the rule and order the respondents to form a judicial enquiry commission to probe the incident.
The home secretary, inspector general of police, Dhaka Metropolitan Police commissioner, deputy commissioner, superintendent of police, Dhaka, and officers-in-charge of Savar and Ashulia police stations have been made respondents to the rule.
During the hearing, petitioner's counsel Bodruddoza Badal told the court that all citizens of Bangladesh have the right to move freely through the country except some restricted areas as per provisions of the constitution,
In exercise of this right the young boys visited Aminbazar, and for this reason they cannot be killed by mass beating on mere suspicion, he said.
The counsel also said the "inaction" of the respondents to protect the lives of six students and their [respondents] subsequent "mysterious" actions are highly illegal, malafide and not sustainable in law.
Deputy Attorney General Motahar Hossain Saju opposed the writ petition saying the government will probe the incident, as two separate cases have been filed in this regard.
Meanwhile, the Supreme Court Bar Association at an urgent general meeting at its south hall yesterday strongly condemned the brutal killing and demanded the government hold a judicial enquiry into the incident.
Rafique-ul Huq, Shahdeen Malik and Bodruddoza Badal, among others, addressed the meeting with SCBA President Khandker Mahbub Hossain in the chair.
Students and teachers of Government Bangla College and Bangladesh University of Business and Technology yesterday staged separate demonstrations protesting the killings of their students and demanding punishment to the killers.
Towhidur Rahman Palash, Kamruzzaman Kanto and Ibrahim Khalil of Bangla College, Shams Rahim Shamam of Maple Leaf International School, Tipu Sultan of Tejgaon College and Sitaf Jabi Munif of Bangladesh University of Business and Technology were beaten to death and another youth Al Amin was injured in the incident.
Comments