A heartbreaking reunion

Abu Bakkar Siddique, a resident of Natore, met his son at Panchagarh Sadar upazila after some months. They had planned to enjoy each other's company at Jalsa Salana, an annual gathering for people belonging to the Ahmadiyya community.

But hours after they met, the reunion turned into a tragedy, as Siuddique's son Jahid Hasan, 23, became a victim of brutality.

On Friday, two people, including Jahid, were killed in a clash between law enforcers and supporters of some Islamist organisations who were demonstrating against Jalsa Salana.

Jahid graduated in engineering from TMSS University of Bogura recently and joined a private company.

He joined Jalsa Salana on Friday morning from Dhaka, while his father reached the venue on Thursday from their ancestral home.

While visiting the spot at Ahmednagar, Siddique was seen sitting on a vehicle, in complete silence, carrying his son's body. He talked to this correspondent just before leaving the Jalsa compound along with the body on Saturday afternoon.

Tears were rolling down his cheeks. "We came to join a holy event, but unfortunately, my son met the tragic end of his life, which was beyond my imagination. Everything is over... Now I have nothing to look forward to...," he said.

At a press conference held at the venue on Saturday, Ahmad Tabshir Chowdhury -- convener of Jalsa Salana, the three-day event organised by the Ahmadiyyas at Ahmednagar and scheduled to start on Friday -- said Jahid was stabbed to death.

Jahid was tasked with maintaining discipline on the premises. When the western side of the venue came under attack, he and several others were there to resist it, Tabshir said.

The attackers beat him mercilessly, he added.

"After perpetrators noticed he was unconscious, they took him to the banks of Karatoa river, a few 100 yards away from the Jalsa premises, and stabbed him in the head and neck, leaving him dead," Tabshir mentioned.

The convener of the Jalsa said the annual congregation was held there for 72 years peacefully.

A section of fanatic people first attacked the Jalsa in 2019, postponing the occasion, he claimed. Last year, the programme was held as usual.

But this time, leaders and activists of several Islamist organisations, including Islamic Andolon Bangladesh, had been staging demonstrations since Thursday, demanding cancellation of the event.

After Juma prayers, they gathered at the town's Chowrangi intersection, brought out a procession and started marching towards the venue.

The clash ensued as police obstructed the procession.

The unruly people also looted and torched the houses of Ahmadiyyas.