Police have not found any prior criminal records of the two students shot in a "gunfight" with the Rapid Action Battalion during an anti-narcotics drive in Barishal's Agailjhara upazila on April 21.

One of them, Siam Molla, an 11th-grade student of Karfa Ideal College, was killed while the other, SSC examinee Rakib Molla, was critically injured.

Siam was 17 years old, and Rakib is 18, according to their birth certificates.

Rab-8, however, in the first information report (FIR) filed with Agailjhara Police Station on April 22, claimed both were 20 years old.

Rakib is now undergoing treatment at Sher-e-Bangla Medical College Hospital in Barishal.

We have not yet obtained any information that Siam and Rakib were involved in drug dealings.

— Milton Mondal sub-inspector of Agoiljhara Police Station

According to the FIR, the Rab conducted the drive at a graveyard in Dakshin Mollapara village under Ratnapur Union at 5:40pm on a tip-off that some people gathered there to trade drugs. 

The Rab said in the FIR that its personnel nabbed Siam and Rakib, and found 393 Yaba pills on them while the other suspects fled the scene.

It said the other suspects returned to help Siam and Rakib when they started shouting during the arrest. The Rab members chased Siam and Rakib after they resisted arrest and ran away. At one stage, Siam and Rakib hit two Rab members with sticks and injured them critically, the FIR said.

It said that when someone from the suspects opened fire, one of the Rab members fired five warning shots in the air, and the suspects fled. The Rab said it rescued the two injured members and later heard that Siam died at Gournadi Health Complex after being critically injured.

Based on the FIR, the Rab filed a case against the duo and 10 to 15 others on drug-related charges. Another case was filed against the fugitive suspects on charges of obstruction of government duties and murder.

FIR WITNESS 'WAS NOT ON SPOT'

The FIR stated that a witness named Sukdeb Baroi, a local union council member, was present on the spot when the Rab searched Siam and Rakib.

When contacted last night, Sukdeb said that he had witnessed no such thing.

"I have not seen the boys, or the dead body. I was not on the spot in the evening, when this incident was said to have occurred. I was called around 11:00pm at night because I am the union parishad member. When I reached there, I only saw shoes lying about," said Sukdeb.

He said that he does not even know Siam and Rakib, and he agreed to be a witness because he was asked.

WHAT LOCALS SAY

Conversations with over two dozen locals during a visit to the spot on April 26 revealed that the area where the drive was conducted is known as a drug spot.

Locals, however, said they had not seen Siam or Rakib engaging in any drug-related activities.

Titu Hawlader, who lives near the graveyard, told this newspaper that on the day of the incident, a group led by a local man with reported links to drug-related activities arrived at the graveyard before Maghrib prayers.

Siam and Rakib were chatting at a nearby shop, Titu said.

At the time, some plainclothes Rab personnel surrounded the spot, but the local man leading the group at the graveyard started shouting "robber, robber", Titu said.

"Siam and Rakib, along with eight to 10 other people, rushed to the scene after hearing the shouts. The locals then got engaged in a scuffle with the Rab members in plainclothes," he said.

Titu's wife Mitu Akter said at one point during the scuffle, the Rab members opened fire, and the locals fled.

Locals said Rakib fell into a pond but managed to swim ashore after being shot.

They said he was first taken to Gournadi Upazila Health Complex and later transferred to Sher-e-Bangla Medical College Hospital, where he underwent surgery at 11:00pm on the same day.

The hospital's Assistant Surgeon Akram Hossain said Rakib was shot in the abdomen.

Meanwhile, according to a death certificate obtained from Gournadi Health Complex, Siam was declared dead on arrival around 6:30pm that day.

Family members described Siam as a quiet student who spent most of his time at home or studying. "Siam had no involvement with drugs or crimes. He was simply at the wrong place at the wrong time," said his cousin Mim Akter.

Rakib's sister-in-law Nasrin Begum echoed similar sentiments, saying, "Doctors have forbidden him from talking, but it's clear from the circumstances that he was not involved in any wrongdoing."

The locals demonstrated in front of Saheberhat Secondary School on April 23 against the killing of Siam. "We want justice," said his cousin Mim.

WHAT POLICE SAY

Sub-Inspector (SI) Milton Mondal of Agailjhara Police Station, who is investigating the drug recovery case, told The Daily Star, "We have not yet obtained any information that Siam and Rakib were involved in drug dealings."

Milton also said that they did not find any evidence that Siam and Rakib used firearms. "But our investigation is underway," he added.

SI Abbas Uddin of the police station, who is investigating the other case, told this newspaper that no prior criminal records were found on the two students.

Oliul Islam, officer-in-charge of Agailjhara Police Station, said the Rab had not informed the police about the drive beforehand.

"We had no prior knowledge about Rab's raid," he said.

Contacted, Senior Warrant Officer Sheikh Riazul Islam of Rab-8, also the complainant of the case, declined to comment on a matter under investigation. He suggested contacting higher authorities for queries.

Rab-8 Deputy Commander Major Mahmudul Ahsan told The Daily Star, "An investigation is ongoing. So far, no confirmed criminal record has been found against Siam and Rakib."