Extortion behind Faridpur lynching: victims’ father

The father of the two brothers killed by a mob in Faridpur’s Madhukhali has pointed the finger at local public representatives for the incident. He came up with the allegation after the district administration said they were looking for Shah Md Asaduzzaman Tapan, chairman of Dumain Union Council, and its member Ajit Biswas for their involvement in the incident. The mob attacked several construction workers building a toilet for a school on Apr 18 night after a Kali temple next to the school caught fire. The mob accused the workers of setting fire to the temple. They were hospitalised and two workers – Ashraful, 21, and his brother Ashadul, 15 – died while undergoing treatment the same night. Their father, Shahjahan Khan, a resident of the same Upazila, said one of his sons told him over mobile phone a few days ago that there were troubles in the construction site. “The [union council] member demanded extortion. He had an altercation with the workers over the matter. The attack took place afterwards,” said Shahjahan. “Chairman Tapan started beating my sons first. Then Ajit Member and others beat them up. My sons were beaten to death for not paying extortion,” the father said. Citing videos of the incident, Shahjahan said: “The attack was carried out under Tapan chairman’s leadership.” Rizia Begum, a resident of Choperghat village, said Tapan had gotten away with wrongdoings in the past.Tapan was arrested after his men attacked the Upazila executive officer in a bid to prevent the administration from constructing houses under the Ashrayan project, said Rashedul Islam, another local. “He was at it again after being released on bail,” said Rashedul. Two videos of the incident went viral on Apr 21. The videos show a man being beaten in a room of the school. Tapan and Ajit are seen beating the man. The duo went into hiding after the videos surfaced, but Tapan was present when Religious Affairs Minister Faridul Haque Khan met the family of the victims two days after the incident. Superintendent of Police Morshed Alam said 12 people were arrested in connection with the incident. Police were conducting an operation to catch the others, including Tapan and Ajit, the officer said. Faridpur Deputy Commissioner Quamrul Ahsan Talukder confirmed at a press conference on Friday that Tapan and Ajit were involved in the incident. The chief of Faridpur district administration said people providing information about the UP chairman and member’s location will be rewarded, but would not specify an amount. Tapan had been suspended two times for attacking an Upazila executive officer and corruption over TCB cards, according to Quamrul. “He got his position back after challenging the suspension in the High Court on both instances. This made him think that he would get away with whatever crime he commits.”
Published on: 2024-04-27 08:29:38.859595 +0200 CEST