The axe now turns to militant patrons, godfathers -- ex BNP minister, BNP leader Shis Mohammad were sued by JMJB torture victim

Barrister Aminul Haque

The action against patrons and godfathers of the banned militant outfit Jama'atul Mujahidin, Bangladesh is to start soon. The executions of Six top Jama'atul Mujahidin, Bangladesh (JMB) militants on late Thursday marked the end of the country's firt overtly run militancy campaign that rattled the nation through a series of blasts and suicide bombings in 2005. The axe now turns to its patrons.

Ex-BNP post and tele-communication minister Barrister Aminul Haque and Rajshahi district BNP general secretary Shis Mohammad were sued at Bagmara police station in Rajshahi on Friday night for patronising Siddikul Ialam Bangla Bhai’s Jagrata Muslim Janata, Bangladesh (JMJB) in 2004.

They who were earlier named by Bangla Bhai as patrons of Jama’atul Mujahidin, Bangladesh were alleged in the case for masterminding JMJB operations in Rajshahi, Naogaon and Natore in 2004 and patronising militants.

Other 26 militants were also accused in the case that was filed by JMJB torture-victim Fazlur Rahman, 43, a poor farmer of Hasanpur village in Bagmara under Sections 143, 342, 364, 385-387, 323-326, 307, 120 (B), 109 [34] of Bangladesh Penal Code for his kidnap, ‘inhuman torture’, demanding ransom of Tk 2 lakh.

The plaintiff, an Awami League adherent alleged, total 28 accused persons orchestrated his kidnap, torture and extortion in collaboration with each other with an ulterior political motive.

He said, Barrister Aminul and Shis Mohammad held meetings with JMJB leaders before his torture as they used to meet for hatching plots of JMJB activities.

Five militants were held in early hours yesterday following the case while four others were caught before over other cases of murder and police assault, said officer-in-charge of Bagmara PS Mirza Golam Sarwar said,

“Our haunt for other accused is still on”, he said and denied to disclose names of other accused for sake of investigation.

Five arrestees were identified as Akram Hossain, 32 Amjad Hossain, 35, Afzal Hossain, 47 of Hasanpur, Nazrul Islam, 38 of Goalpara in Bagmara of Rajshahi, and Mizanur Rahman, 40 of Kalupara of Manda upazila in Naogaon. A court sent them to jail custody in the afternoon yesterday.

Four others are -- Mustafijur Rahman alias Killer Mustak, Prof Lutfar Rahman, Abdus Sattar, and 1971 war collaborator Ramjan Kaya’s son Korban Ali of Bagmara.

The other accused include three other BNP leaders and two union council chairmen.

Plaintiff Fazlur Rahman is one of many, who were tortured by Bangla Bhai and his men. The tortures of Bangla Bhai left him badly maimed.

Bangla Bhai himself and JMJB thugs kidnapped him on April 20, 2004 and took to their torture camp, set up at house of 1971 war collaborator Ramzan Kaya at Hamirkutsa.

"You are a Sarbohara [outlaw]. Where is your arms and ammunition?" Bangla Bhai asked him in the night.

"I am just a poor farmer and a supporter of Awami League. I never worked for any underground party," he replied.

"No, we know you are a Sarbohara and you must admit it to us."

As he was denying, he was asked to pay a ransom of Tk 2 lakh.

Still denied, Bangla Bhai started beating. As other armed zealots joined the beating, Rahman soon fainted.

On the following day, they hung him upside down with a bamboo fence and again beaten up until fainting.

His wife Kotsna Begum rescued him later from bank of a pond near the camp and took him upazila health complex.

He was later treated at Rajshahi Medical College Hospital and Bangladesh Rehabilitation Centre for Trauma (BRCT) in Dhaka.

The police held some of the bigots after filing a case in 2005, but all of them walked out of jail on bail and later police submitted final report in the case for want of witnesses.
End