Rab to probe its men over Tk 6cr bribe, murder allegations

The Rapid Action Battalion (Rab) today formed a high-powered committee to investigate into the allegation that its members killed Narayanganj city councillor Nazrul Islam in exchange of Tk 6 crore.

Aftab Uddin, additional director general (administration) of the elite force, will head the team, director of legal and media wing Habibur Rahman told The Daily Star.

In a stunning allegation, Nazrul's father-in-law Shahidul Islam made the allegation after a protest meeting in Narayanganj yesterday.

According to him, some workers witnessed the abductions on April 27 near Shibu Market in the district.

On the day, Narayanganj panel mayor and ward councillor Nazrul and his four aides, and senior lawyer Chandan Sarker and his driver were abducted separately around the same time after they came out of the court area in two cars. Six bodies were found floating in the Shitalakkhya river three days later and another the next day.

Police suspect a single group was behind the crime, while Nazrul's wife Selina Islam said ward-4 Councillor Nur Hossain was responsible for the kidnap and the killing.

"A vehicle marked with Rab-11 was there at the time," Shahidul told journalists at Narayanganj Rifles Club.

Also known as Shahid Chairman, he said after the abduction he went to the Fatullah Police Station to file a case against Rab men, including its commanding officer (CO), but the police refused to take the case.

He added that he also went to the Rab-11 headquarters in Adamji to report the abduction, but the CO kept him confined for six hours there and quizzed him.

Lt Col Tareque Sayeed Mohammad was the CO of Rab-11 then. He was withdrawn following the incident.

After the abduction of the seven people, Nazrul’s wife filed a case against Hossain, also vice-president of Siddhirganj Awami League, and Yasin, general secretary of the same unit, and fouor others.

But police have yet to arrest the accused in the case.

In a latest development, the law enforcers yesterday seized a car of Nur Hossain's brother Nuruzzaman, suspecting it was used in the abduction and the killing.

It was seized around 11:30am from a glass factory, JMS Glass Industries Ltd, owned by a relative of ruling AL lawmaker Shamim Osman at Siddhirganj in Narayanganj. 

Earlier in the day, police raided Nur Hossain's house at Shimrail and seized a microbus and detained 11 people from there. Police, however, did not disclose the identities of the detainees.

Protesting the abduction, Narayanganj people yesterday observed a daylong hartal, protesting the abduction and the killing of the seven people.

Meanwhile, the abduction and murder case of Nazrul was handed over to the Detective Branch (DB).

Yesterday, detectives produced 15 detainees, including the 11 detained from Nur Hossain's house, before a Narayanganj court, seeking remand.

The court granted seven days' remand for six of them and two days' each for the nine others.