Investigative Report of Chontia incident at  Jamalpur District, Bangladesh

Investigation conducted by Human Rights Congress for Bangladesh Minorities (HRCBM) -Dhaka, Bangladesh on 26th of March,03

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On 26th of March,2003 I along with Subrata Kumar Chanda proceeded to Jamalpur by Bus from Mymensingh at about 7-30 in the morning and reached Jamalpur at about 10-30 a.m. We first went to the official residence of Dr.Aftabuddin Ahmed, Superintendent of Police,Jamalpur, but the S.P. did not talk to us and instructed his constable on duty to request us to go to his office. As the Office was closed on 26th March,2003 for Independence Day we did not go there. Thereafter we went to the official residence of Mr.Md.Abul Hashem, Deputy Commissioner, Jamalpur at about 11 a.m. Md.Abul Hashem gave us half an hour time at his residence and we discussed the incident of persecution and torture upon the Hindu families at Chontia Bazar and showed him the news published in different news papers within his jurisdiction. The D.C. Jamalpur admitted the incident and gave us assurance that the matter will be taken up with iron hand.
We went to Jamalpur Sadar police station and discussed with Officer-in-Charge - Md.Masudul Hoque regarding the unhappy incident took place on 22nd of March,2003 at Chontia . We got a copy of  F.I.R.(First information report) lodged by the complainant-Shymol Karmakar on 24th of March,2003. The FIR shows that Shymol Karmakar filed complaint to the O.C. Jamalpur Sadar P.s. involving 16 accuseds (Jamalpur Sadar P.S.case No.51 dated 24.3.2003 under section 147/148/448/223/226/307/427/379/380 of Bangladesh Penal Code) namely:

1. Prof. Abdul Hamid son of late Ishab Mondal of Taravit (Ex.Upazila Chairman)
2. Mahabubur Rahaman Mahabbat son of Sarafat Ali of Chontia
3. Zahurul Islam son of late Samser Mondal of Gopinathpur
4. Zahangir Alam son of late Wadud Mnshi of Narayanpur.
5. Ibrahim Hossain son of late Ayeszuddin of Taravit
6. Mvi.Mozammel son of Shamsu Munshi of Raravit
7. Sahajada son of Soharab Hossain of Gopinathpur
8. Milton son of Azahar of Materpara
9. Mojibur Rahman son of late Indu of Sontia
10.Zulhash son of Mujibar(Dudu) of Chontia Bazar
11.Abdul Halim son of late Erfan Ali of Gopinathpur
12.Lalchand son of Sultan of Gopinathpur
13.Abdul Jalil son of Entaz Ali of Chontia
14.Mozammel (Clerk) son of late Sharifuddin of Chontia
15.Asar Ali son of late Bhaja Sarkar of Gopinathpur
16.Tofazzal Hossain @ Tuku son of late Abed Ali Mondal of Patal . All of P.s. and Dist. Jamalpur and 20/25 others.

The contents of the FIR written in Bengali  lodged in Jamalpur Sadar P.S. is as follows :-
As per contents of the FIR we both proceeded to Narayanpur Investigation Unit at Jamalpur by a auto rickshaw ,18 kilometers from Jamalpur town nearer to the place of occurrence, as the responsibility of  investigation of the aforesaid case has been entrusted with Md.Giasuddin, Sub-Inspector of Police and  In-Charge of Narayanpur Investigation Unit. We got Md. Giasuddin in the said camp and asked him about the incident and the latest progress of the investigation. But it is astonishing to note that till our visit to Chontia the  I.O totally failed to arrest any of the terrorists nor he visited the place of  occurrence nor he recovered any alamats (blood stained Sharees, gamcha and hair ) He only informed the incident to the O.C. Jamalpur Sadar for necessary action and finished his job. We asked the I.O. of the case why any of the 16 FIR named accuseds have not yet been arrested till date. He replied that the accuseds were absconding in different places. I am not at all convinced how an elected Chairman of the U.P. locality could not be arrested in spite of serious allegations of attempting to murder in the F.I.R.
We requested the I.O.of the case to accompany us to the place of occurrence at Chontia and accordingly he agreed to accompany us and we reached the place of occurrence at about 12.00 hours. We first went to the house of  the victims and the complainant -Shymal Karmakar who along with the members of his family burst into tears seeing us in a body. They got encouragement to ventilate their grievances and narrated the incident of torture and repression upon them one after another. Shymal Karmakar told us that he has got a plot of land adjacent to a Kinder Garden School at Chontia, managed by an Advocate Khalilur Rahaman, who is also an influential person in the locality as BNP leader. The Management Committee of the Kinder Garden School had been putting tremendous  pressure upon Shymal Karmakar to sell the plot in Mouza No.324 within Digpait Union Parishad XIV in the name of development of the school.

Mr. Shymal Karmakar of sontia showing his injury to Adv. Ghosh HRCBM-Dhaka in the presence of police officer, local PS.	Victims are showing blood stain in the cloths to Adv. Ghosh and SI of police.

But Shymal did not sell the only land to the School Committee. And as a result the Management Committee is not happy and there was always hot altercation between Shymal and Management committee. As per version of the victims-owner of the plot of land the Management Committee headed by Prof.Abdul Hamid and Mahabubur Rahaman Mahabbat (newly elected Chairman from BNP) with the collusion of other accuseds planned to occupy the plot of land of Shymal Karmakar.
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