CTTC officer sued under torture and custodial death act

A deputy commissioner of the Counter Terrorism and Transnational Crime (CTTC) unit of the Dhaka Metropolitan Police (DMP) and another individual were sued today under the Torture and Custodial Death (Prohibition) Act for allegedly torturing a man while in custody.

The accused are Additional Deputy Commissioner (ADC) Md Najmul Islam and Farjana Saqui, a close associate of former post and telecommunication minister Mustafa Jabbar.

Jobayer Ahmed, a resident of Cumilla, filed the case with the Dhaka Metropolitan Sessions Judge's Court, accusing the two of custodial torture.

Upon hearing the complaint, Judge Md Zakir Hossain recorded the plaintiff's statement and said that he would issue an order later in the day.

In his complaint, Jobayer stated that he had established Dr Jobayer Medicare & Pathology Centre in Borura, Cumilla, on 10 August 2020.

He alleged that ADC Najmul summoned him to his office on December 4, 2022. When he refused to comply, the police officer reportedly threatened him.

"Finding no other option, I went to the CTTC office on December 15, where I saw Farjana Saqui seated beside Najmul. When I asked why I had been summoned, Najmul used abusive language before physically torturing me while Farjana Saqui filmed the incident," the complaint said.

He further alleged that Najmul, in collusion with Farjana, falsely implicated him in a case filed by her with Vatara Police Station on January 19, 2023.

He was later sent to court but secured bail on April 3 that year.

On February 14, 2023, Najmul was also sued for allegedly torturing a businessman in the custody of the Detective Branch (DB) of police in Dhaka.