‘Our mornings begin in tears’

The family members of a customs officer, his wife, and their three-year-old daughter -- who died among 46 others in the Bailey Road fire on February 29 -- have demanded a fair investigation, alongside justice and punishment for those responsible for the incident.

They also alleged that if the responsible state agencies had acted immediately after the fire, there would not have been so many casualties.

Shah Jalal Uddin, a customs officer; his wife, Meherunnesa Helali Mina; and their three-year-old daughter, Fahiruz Kashem Jamira -- three members of a family from Haldiapalong union in Ukhiya, Cox's Bazar -- died in the fire at Green Cozy Cottage mall.

Shah Jalal's father, Abul Kashem, his mother, Razia Begum, and his siblings, Shah Alam Shaju, Abul Hasnat, and Taslima Akhter, visited the accident site, as the whole family had come to Dhaka for Kashem's treatment.

While talking to The Daily Star, Shah Jalal's sister, Taslima, said they found from his call log that he had attempted to contact the national emergency number 999 four times but received no response.

"If the state agencies, including the police and Fire Service officials, had promptly acted following the fire, there might not have been so many casualties, and my brother, his wife, and his daughter would still be alive," she said.

The deceased customs officials father Kashem demanded an impartial investigation as well as justice and punishment for the building and restaurant owners if they were found responsible for the fire incident.

Kashem, also a freedom fighter, urged Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina to intervene so that an impartial investigation can be conducted regarding the accident and appropriate steps taken against those responsible for the incident.

Shaju, elder brother of Shah Jalal, recounted that his brother, along with his wife and daughter, was supposed to go to Khagrachhari on the night of the Bailey Road fire.

"He had bought bus tickets to go to Khagrachhari. We were supposed to meet them. But we could not see him before he breathed his last," he lamented, staring at the ill-fated building where the deadly fire broke out.

"Our mornings start in tears upon seeing the pictures of my brother and his three-year-old daughter, and we go to bed with tears. We cannot console my father and mother," he said, demanding justice for the deceased.