The forgotten boys of Mirpur

For a decade now, 54-year-old house help Jyotsna Robi Das has been seeking justice for the killing of her son.

But her pleas went unheard -- until recently, when hopes revived following the fall of the Awami League-led government on August 5 last year.

Jyotsna's son was one of three teenage boys shot dead in the capital's Mirpur in February 2015. They were suspected of being arsonists linked to the then-main opposition, BNP.

According to the victims' families, the killers had ties to the then-ruling Awami League, which is why police failed to identify any perpetrators and eventually submitted a final report without making any arrests.

"For justice, I went to the police and then the court. Still, I got nothing," said Jyotsna, mother of Sumon, one of the victims, while talking to The Daily Star.

Holding a portrait of her son's body, she broke down in tears.

"How could they shoot so many bullets at such a little boy?" she said. "When I visited the spot, bullet shells were scattered across the narrow alley."

"Whenever I walk on the roads, the image of his lifeless body flashes before my eyes," added Jyotsna, who now supports her family working as a house help. "No one in our area can say my son was a bad person."

"I want the highest punishment for the killers. This is the only demand. I hope the current government will take steps to bring them to justice."

Another victim, Robin, was raised by his grandmother Halima Khatun, 65, after his mother abandoned him as a baby.

"Due to our hardship, my grandson couldn't go to school. He started working as a leguna helper...," she said. "I am still waiting for justice."

The families urged the government to reinvestigate the case.

Contacted on May 11, Muhammad Talebur Rahman, deputy commissioner (media) of Dhaka Metropolitan Police, said, "It's an old incident. I don't know anything about it," but added, "Police will look into the matter again."

Halima Khatun, 65, mourns her grandson. The photos were taken recently. Photo: Star

THE INCIDENT

Around 7:00pm on February 22, 2015, a group of local Jubo League men caught Sumon, Robin, and Jewel -- aged between 14 and 15 -- near Krishibid Bhaban on Begum Rokeya Sarani, suspecting they were planning to firebomb public transport.

They took the boys to a dark alley in West Kazipara's Baishbari area and tortured them after tying up their hands, according to two traders who run businesses near the scene.

Several hours later, police recovered their bullet-riddled bodies from an alleyway, said several locals.

Various newspapers at that time, citing autopsy reports, reported that the boys had at least 56 bullet wounds.

CASES FILED

The next day, Sub-Inspector Masud Parvez of Mirpur Model Police Station filed a murder case against 100-150 unidentified individuals. The victims' ages were recorded as 19 and 20 in the case statement.

In May 2017, police submitted the final report saying it was indeed a murder, but no suspects could be identified.

One of the families, losing faith in the investigation, filed another murder case with a Dhaka court in December 2015, hoping the court would be able to deliver justice. But it was "summarily dismissed" in April 2018, as per the court records.

Sub-Inspector Md Rafiquzzaman Mia of the Detective Branch, who investigated the case, wrote in his May 2017 final report, "The names and addresses of the perpetrators could not be identified, and the chances of locating and arresting them in the near future are very slim."

The court accepted the report but said the police would reopen the case and press charges if suspects were identified.

According to the final report, the victims were caught in a shooting by their own group while targeting a chasing mob. They were then allegedly beaten by the mob before police rescued them and took them to Dhaka Medical College Hospital, where they later died.

The report claimed that a group of 10 miscreants, including the victims, opened fire on locals as they were being chased during an attempted arson attack on vehicles using petrol and cocktail bombs amid a hartal called by the BNP-led 20-party alliance.

The police report labelled the boys as "mischievous bombers".

However, several media outlets, quoting eyewitnesses, said no mob beating occurred around the area that day.

Meanwhile, family members and locals claimed the boys occasionally attended political programmes but insisted they had no criminal history.

Police initially told the media the boys were critically injured in a mob beating and died early on February 23 at DMCH. The case filed by police, however, stated that three "unidentified arsonists" were beaten and shot dead by a mob.