PW-3 narrate Aug 15 incidents in court
Armymen took Russel, then gunshots
The third witness in the Bangabandhu murder case in his deposition to the court of District and Sessions Judge, Dhaka, yesterday said that four or five army personnel pulled Bangabandhu from his room and took him towards the staircase. Selim alias Abdul, 43, the third witness, worked at the residence of Bangabandhu as a helping hand from 1967 and was present there during the time of the killing on August 15, 1975. The proceedings in the court began at around 11:35 am and ended at about 4:30 pm when one of the defence lawyers reminded the court that the last time for the court was fixed at 4:30 pm after which the court cannot sit without consensus of the parties concerned.
The judge then adjourned the days proceedings till Monday next. Earlier, Sharfuddin Mukul had completed his cross-examination of the second prosecution witness Abdur Rahman alias Rama. After recording the statement of the third prosecution witness, the judge asked the state defence to start their cross-examination. One lawyer on behalf of the 14 state defence counsels of the absconding accused pleaded before the court to let the defence lawyers for the arrested accused to start the cross-examination. Pleading before the court, Advocate Pran Nath, lawyer for the absconding accused Maj (relieved) Shariful Hossain, said that all the lawyers of the state defence were junior and not sufficiently experienced in the legal profession.
Khan Saifur Rahman ,lawyer for accused Lt Col (dismissed) Syed Farookur Rahman, observed that when a case involving capital punishment was being tried the defence lawyers for absconding accused "should be of some standing". The judge rejected the plea of the state defence and ordered then to begin the cross-examination of the third witness. The third prosecution witness said, "Armymen receiving instruction from their officers took Russel bhai and afterwards I heard sounds firing and groaning of Russel", according to UNB. Selim, who now works at Bangabhaban became emotional while narrating the episode of killings. The PW-3 who was injured by gunshots on the day at one stage of his deposition showed the wound marks to the court during yesterday's trial proceedings.
Rama told the Dhaka District and Sessions Judge's Court that Sheikh Hasina burst into tears time and again when he narrated to her the assassination of country's founding father Sheikh Mujibur Rahman during one of her visits to Tungipara, the ancestral village of Bangabandhu. "Almighty Allah will do the justice," Hasina had told him, Rama said as defence counsel Mukul questioned him if he was asked by her to go to court or magistrate or thana to inform the matter. The PW-3, Selim, started his deposition after being introduced by special PP Serajul Haq. Prosecution lawyer advocate Ramzan Ali also interrogated Selim during his deposition to the court.
Selim had come to Bangabandhu's house in 1967. He worked at the house as a servant and got a government job as Bangabandhu's personal staff in 1972. Earlier, the arrested accused Col (retd) Syed Farooq Rahman, Col (retd) Sultan Shahriar Rashid Khan, Col (LPR) Muhiuddin, Honorary Captain (retd) Abdul Wahab Joardar and former state minister Taheruddin Thakur were brought to the court. Narrating the incident, Selim said he and Rama woke up hearing the sound of opening the door of Bangabandhu's bedroom. They were sleeping on the corridor in front of the room.
As Bangabandhu, wearing ganjee (vest) and lungi, was going downstairs "Amma (Begum Mujib) gave me spectacles and a punjabi of Bangabandhu to give him at the reception on the ground floor." Selim said he found Bangabandhu at the reception telling someone by phone to give message to Rajarbagh and Cantonment that miscreants had attacked his sister's house. "At this time, rain of bullets hit the wall, and Bangabandhu and I sat on the floor," Selim said and added Bangabandhu went upstairs after not finding anyone over telephone. "I followed him." He continued: We found Kamal bhai on the staircase. He was going down to the ground floor. Bangabandhu closed the door after going inside his room. At this time, we heard heavy firing from the south direction.
From the window of Sheikh Jamal's room, he said, he watched several armymen in black uniform entering the house opening fire. He then took shelter in the bathroom of Jamal. Selim, who was then, 21, told the court that from the bathroom he heard the attackers asking all inmates of the house to surrender.
"Later, I saw two armymen in black-uniform coming upstairs. Again I took shelter in the bathroom." Selim said: The two men with stengun came to me. I thought they had come from cantonment receiving news of attack on Bangabandhu's house. "But it was not correct.... As soon as I came out of the bathroom they opened fire on me. Four bullets struck my hand and abdomen and I fell down," the PW-3 said showing the court his wound marks. He said he sat on the floor leaning against the wall and saw five armymen taking Bangabandhu towards the staircase. "Seeing me wounded and bleeding, Bangabandhu said the boy has been working at my house since his boyhood and asked who has fired shots at me."Bangabandhu also said, "Where will you take me? Why are you making nonsense? What do you want?" But the army personnel didn't reply, Selim told the court. "Afterwards I heard sounds of firing, I heard Bangabandhu groaning," said an emotional Selim. After sometime, Selim said, he saw Begum Mujib, Sheikh Naser, Rama and Russel being taken towards the staircase. But, Begum Mujib shouted near the staircase, "I will not go there ..... shoot and kill me here," said Selim. He said later the army personnel took Sheikh Naser, Rama and Russel to the ground floor and Begum Mujib to the bedroom. "I heard sounds of firing and groaning of women in the bedroom." Selim said: After sometime firing was stopped and I was still sitting on the floor. One armyman asked if I would be able to go downstairs and some of them took me there. "While going downstairs I saw the body of Bangabandhu lying on the staircase and I was taken down over his body," said Selim.
He continued: Reaching the verandah of ground floor I saw the body of Kamal bhai near the door of reception. Later some of us were kept sitting in a line, he added. "From there, I also saw the body of a security guard, and bua, Rama, Mohitul and DSP Nurul Islam standing in another line," Selim said adding he also found Russel standing near Mohitul. He told the court that one army personnel had hot exchange of words with another over sending him (Selim) to hospital. After a while, several army jeeps and a tank reached the house and some officers descended from the tank. They talked in English and Bangla.
"At this stage, armymen receiving instruction from the officers took Russel bhai and afterwards I heard firing and groaning of Russel," Selim told the court. He also said that a crying Russel grabbed Mohitul in fear and asked him if they will also kill him. Later, Selim said, one army officer who came from behind the tank took him to hospital where he met Sheikh Selim and Maruf. They asked him about the situation at the house of Bangabandhu.
"They have killed all," he said. While making the deposition, Selim informed the court that all nine members of the Bangabandhu family, excepting Sheikh Hasina, had resided at the Dhanmondi residence. "Excepting Sheikh Hasina and Sheikh Rehana, who were abroad during the incident, all the seven were killed at the house at about 5 am on August 15, 1975," he said. His nearly one-and-half hour deposition concluded at 1:30 pm when the court was adjourned for lunch break.
Five out of the 14 state defence lawyers for the absconding accused in the murder case also cross-examined Selim. Earlier, in their written and verbal prayers to the court, all the state defence prayed to the court to allow them to cross-examine the witness after other defense lawyers finished their job. The lawyers for the absconding accused said as they were not properly equipped for lack of briefing from their absent clients, they might be able to cross-examine the witness by getting points from the cross-examination by other defense lawyers.
The court, however, rejected the prayers and ordered them to begin their cross-examination.
Replying to a question from Advocate Mahbubuddin, the counsel for Major (retd) Bazlul Huda, PW Selim said Sheikh Kamal and Sheikh Jamal went out on August 14, but returned home by 10 to 10:30 pm. He said both the brothers used to have their dinner by 10 to 10:30 in the evening. He said he had served dinner to both the brothers on August 14 night.
Replying to another question, Selim said he woke up on August 15 at about 5 am when Bangabandhu had opened the door. "I heard the sound of firing after I woke up ... fire was coming from southern side of the house and it was one sided," he said.
"Peeping through the window of Jamal Bhai's room, I saw about 3 to 4 people attired in black firing towards the house from outside the gate," he told the court.
He said he saw Bangabandhu making phone calls from the reception, but could not say whom he (Bangabandhu) was talking or trying to contact.
In reply to a question from Advocate Ruhul Amin, the counsel for Major (retd) Noor, the prosecution witness said he made the statement with police on October 3, 1996.
Selim said he was seriously injured after being hit by stray bullets and was in the Dhaka Medical College Hospital for one month and three days and Prof Matiur Rahman had treated him.
He said he was taken to the hospital about two to two-and-a-half hour after he was wounded.
About the army personnel he saw firing towards the Bangabandhu's house, Selim said "possibly I'll be able to recognise them if I see them now."State defense for Major (retd) Rashed Chowdhury, Major (retd) Abdul Aziz Pasha and Capt (retd) Majed also cross-examined PW Selim.
The court was adjourned till 10:30 am on July 21 (Monday).
For all latest news, follow The Daily Star's Google News channel.
Comments