A Panchagarh court yesterday granted police 15 days to interrogate three people arrested in a case field in connection with the murder of a Hindu priest in Debiganj upazila of the district. Senior Judicial Magistrate Marjia Kathun granted the remand after Aiyub Ali, officer-in-charge of Debiganj Police Station, produced the three at the court with a 20-day remand prayer against each. Of the three, two were identified as JMB operatives Kalilur Rahman 55,of Prodhanpara village of Panchagarh and Babul Hossain of Pabna. The other, Zahangir Alam 35, a Jamaat activist, is from Debiganj upazila. Meanwhile, the United States has strongly condemned the attacks that killed the priest and injured another person, adds our Diplomatic Correspondent. “We condemn in the strongest possible terms these cowardly acts that target members of a community with historic roots in Bangladesh and that strike at Bangladesh’s traditions of diversity and harmony,” US Ambassador to Bangladesh Marcia Bernicat said in a statement yesterday. The United States supports the government of Bangladesh’s efforts to identify the perpetrators of this and all extremist attacks, she said.
“The Government of Bangladesh’s commitment to rooting out militancy is demonstrated by the recent arrest of suspects involved in these incidents and by the counter-terrorism raid in Dhaka, which lead to the seizure of bombs and bomb-making materials,” she added. Earlier on Monday, the European Union and United Kingdom condemned the killing. Our Staff Correspondent adds: Bangladesh Society for the Enforcement of Human Rights (BSEHR), in a statement, expressed deep concern over the priest killing and demanded a speedy trial, adds “We strongly condemn these types of crimes and want punishment for the criminals,” BSEHR Secretary General Sigma Huda said. Priest Jogeshwar Roy, 50, was hacked to death by some assailants in Debiganj on Sunday morning. A devotee was shot in the same attack.