4 yrs of Hefajat carnage
No disposal of any of 53 cases yet
STAFF REPORTER
No visible progress has been reported in last four years in the 53 cases filed over the mayhem at Shaplan Chattar in the capitals Motijheel area carried out by supporters of Hefajat-e-Islam on May 5, 2013.
Many have also expressed doubts over the future of these cases, in light of the present warming relationship between the government and Hefajat. Some also hold the apprehension that the cases might even be withdrawn soon as the relationship between the government and Hefajat is now good and the government has agreed to some Hefajat proposals including changing of textbooks and the recognition of Dawra degree of Qawmi madrasa as equivalent to masters degree.
Among the cases, police has so far submitted the charge sheets in only four cases while 49 cases are still under investigation. After the Hefajat mayhem, police and other agencies filed a total of 53 cases against 200 named leaders of Hefajat and 40,000 unnamed on charges of assembling illegally at Shapla Chattar and attacking police and people with firearms and explosives to kill them, attacking police stations with arms andbombs to loot firearms, attacking government offices, banks and setting those on fire, setting fire to holy Quran and Hadith and other Islamic books, looting such books and hurting the Muslim sentiments in and around the area, said police sources.
Among the cases, 33 were filed with Paltan Police Station, six with Motijheel Police Station, three with Shahbagh Police Station, two with Ramna Police Station and the rest with other police stations in the capital. At least seven of these were murder cases.
Apart from the 53 cases, 20 other cases were also filed in Narayanganj, Chittagong and Bagerhat districts. Among them, the trial of one case has ended, where all the accused were acquitted of the charges, according to police sources.
On May 5 in 2013, thousands of supporters of Hefajat-e Islam, a Quami madrasa-based Islamic organisation based in Chittagong, held a rally at Motijheels Shapla Chattar to press home their 13-point charter of demands. The rally ended but an indefinite sit-in was announced at the commercial hub of the capital which put various establishments including the Bangladesh Bank at risk. Mayhem erupted, leading to casualties, arson, looting and even cutting down of trees at the rally site. Police, RAB and BGB organised a joint operation around 3am to evict the Hefajat supporters from the area by force.
Hefajat later alleged that thousands were killed during the raid, but evidence of that is yet to be found. The governments death figure stood at 13, including three policemen. Police arrested at least 376 people, including Hefajats General Secretary Junaid Babunagari, but all of them were later released on bail.
When asked about the incident, Junaid Babunagari said the cases were filed against them following the Shapla Chattar incident to harass the leaders and activists of the organisation. After filing the cases, police arrested a numbers of leaders and activists of our organization. But, all including myself are now on bail, he added.
In response to a query, he said that there was no political programme on that day. The cases filed over the incident were false and fabricated, he added.
Home minister Asaduzzaman Khan Kamal on Wednesday said the cases filed against Hefajat-e-Islam would continue as per legal course.
The minister ruled out chances of withdrawing 42 cases filed against the Islamist group after its top leaders including Ahmad Shafi met the Prime Minister at Ganabhaban on Tuesday night.
The minister was talking to newsmen after a meeting on combating extremism at Bangladesh Secretariat.
