Limon files case with ICT against eight ex-Rab men

Limon Hossain, who was shot by Rab 13 years ago and subsequently lost his left leg, filed a complaint with the International Crimes Tribunal yesterday accusing eight former Rab personnel and an ex-army officer.

Among the accused are Maj Gen (retd) Tarique Ahmed Siddique, former security affairs adviser to ex-prime minister Sheikh Hasina; Maj Gen (sacked) Ziaul Ahsan, former director general of the National Telecommunication Monitoring Centre (NTMC); and Major Rashed, ex-company commander of Rab-8 in Barishal.

The other named accused are ex-Rab-8 deputy assistant director Lutfor Rahman, corporal Mazharul Islam, constable Md Abdul Aziz, Nayek Muktadir Hossain, and soldiers Prahlad Chanda and Kartik Kumar Biswas. Limon also accused six unnamed individuals of the incident.

Speaking to reporters after filing the complaint, Limon said, "I could not get justice for 13 years during the rule of Sheikh Hasina's government. I have now filed the complaint with the International Crimes Tribunal, hoping that justice will be delivered."

Demanding compensation from the government, he said, "Rab has been accused of numerous human rights violations, including enforced disappearances, killings, and extortion. As I think it is a terrorist organisation, I demand its disbandment."

Limon said he faced difficulties in taking legal actions against those responsible for the 2011 shooting incident during Hasina's rule.

"We faced many obstacles and threats. Tarique Ahmed Siddique, then Rab-8 camp commander Major Rashed, and former NTMC director general Ziaul Ahsan are among those who couldn't be accused."

He also said that his treatment at the National Institute of Traumatology and Orthopaedic Rehabilitation was hampered due to directives by then home minister Sahara Khatun.

His treatment later continued at Gonoshasthaya Nagar Hospital in the capital's Dhanmondi, said Limon, adding that he received support from Gonoshasthaya and Bangla daily Prothom Alo for his education.

Taking Limon for an aide of a notorious criminal they were looking for, Rab-8 members from Barishal shot him in Saturia village of Jalakathi's Rajapur upazila on March 23, 2011.

Rab had claimed that the shooting took place during a raid to arrest the criminal.  Limon, then 16, was picked up and sent to a hospital. The force filed two cases against him the same day.

Four days after the shooting, Limon's left leg had to be amputated below the knee.

His mother filed an attempted murder case with a Jhalakathi court on April 10, 2011.

Limon completed his HSC in 2013, earned a bachelor's degree in law in 2018, and a master's (LLM) degree in 2019.

The government on July 9, 2013, decided to withdraw both the cases against Limon following a request from then National Human Rights Commission chairman Mizanur Rahman.

Limon has been serving as a lecturer in the law department of Gono University in Savar since 2020.

ICT Prosecutor Sultan Mahmud said they have received the complaint.

"The International Crimes Tribunal has the jurisdiction to hold the trial of such cases," he told The Daily Star.