Army men sued for death in custody

Court Correspondent, The Daily Star Dec 16, 2002

A woman yesterday charged an army major and his troops with the murder of her husband during interrogation. This is for the first time that such a case was filed during the ongoing joint drive against criminals.

Mehnaz Hossain Anjan, wife of a poultry farm owner, Abul Hossain Litu, lodged the case against one Major Kabir and his accompanies who were on duty at the Savar army camp.

In her case filed with the First Class Magistrate's Court, Dhaka, Mehnaz accused the major and his accompanying troops of the Savar army camp of killing her husband on October 28 this year.

A total of 30 persons have so far been killed after arrests by army during the ongoing drive by the joint forces since October 17.

In her complaint, Mehnaz told the court that on October 28, the major and some other army personnel went to her husband's poultry farm, Matsa Poultry Farm, at about 1:00pm and cordoned off the area.

"Without explaining anything, they entered the farm. My husband was then taking bath. Army tied up his hands, legs and eyes and beat him up mercilessly after tying him to a tree," she said.

"At one stage, they termed my husband a top listed criminal of the Seven Star group and asked him to hand over his firearms," said the wife in her petition.

She said her husband told army that he was not a criminal and had no firearms in his possession. "The army personnel then thoroughly searched the poultry farm with metal detector but found no firearms, which made them angry and they tortured my husband."

Mehnaz alleged that her husband died during torture. "Then, they covered my husband's body with a bed sheet and took it away in their vehicle," she added.

She alleged that army called up Savar police and forced them to prepare an inquest report. They later handed over the body to the police at around midnight, she added.

As a cover-up, army circulated that the victim got himself seriously injured by jumping off the first floor of the farm and later succumbed to injuries at the Combined Military Hospital at Savar, she said. But there are no two-storied buildings in the farm compound, she informed the court.

The following day, she said, Savar police brought the body to the Dhaka Medical College Hospital (DMCH) and numerous injury marks were visible in the lower portion of his body.

Mehnaz said the police did not allow photojournalists when they went to the DMCH morgue to take snap of the body.

"I contacted the officer-in-charge (OC) and other police officials of the Savar Police Station, but they failed to tell me anything regarding how my husband died. Rather police told me that I would face problem if I wanted to know the reason behind his death," She added. "I also went to the DMCH and tried in vain to see the post-mortem report."

She said police filed an unnatural death (UD) case with the Savar Police Station to divert the incident.

Magistrate SM Isahak Hasan recorded her statement and will hold a full hearing tomorrow.

Barrister Tania Amir and advocates Shahara Khatun, Mostafa Abul Hossain, Moklesur Rahman Badal, Abdur Rahman Hawlader and Habibur Rahman moved the case on behalf of the complainant.