Bangladesh Islami Chhatra Shibir has filed a complaint with the International Crimes Tribunal. The complaint involves incidents where several members of the organization were abducted, shot, and left disabled after a few days.
On Tuesday (November 5), four former members of Chhatra Shibir appeared at the tribunal to file this complaint.
Representing them were Advocate Abdullah Al Noman, the Central Legal Affairs Secretary of Chhatra Shibir, and Advocate Amanullah Al Jihadi (Adib). They submitted the complaint to the tribunal.
Advocate Amanullah Al Jihadi (Adib), the victims’ lawyer, stated that several members of Chhatra Shibir who had been abducted and later shot, rendering them disabled, came forward to file the complaint at the tribunal.
The complainants include former President of the Joypurhat District Chhatra Shibir, Abu Zor Gafari, former District Secretary of Joypurhat Omar Ali, former Secretary of the Chaugacha Thana branch in the West Jessore District Israfil, and former Literary Secretary of West Jessore Ruhul Amin.
In a press briefing following the filing, Advocate Abdullah Al Noman shared that in 2015, Abu Zor Gafari and Omar Ali were in Dhaka for organizational work. After disembarking from a Hanif Transport bus on December 9, they were taken by a group identifying themselves as RAB officers and transported to the RAB camp in Uttara. There, they endured extreme physical abuse for a week under the pretense of interrogation. On December 15, they were transferred to the RAB camp in Rajshahi, where the abuse continued. On the night of December 16, they were moved to the Joypurhat RAB camp and then shown to be arrested under a weapons case at the Panchbibi Police Station. However, this was not the end of their ordeal. They were taken to a forest area at 3 a.m. and shot in the legs at point-blank range, which shattered their legs. In critical condition, they were taken to the local sub-district hospital and later referred to Bogura’s Ziaur Rahman Medical College. Doctors there advised their transfer to Dhaka for advanced treatment. At Dhaka’s Pangu Hospital, surgery was performed on their legs, but their condition worsened, and they were eventually sent to the National Institute of Cardiovascular Diseases in Dhaka. Due to gangrene in their legs, they had to undergo amputation.
Advocate Abdullah Al Noman further mentioned that Israfil and Ruhul Amin were leaders in the Chaugacha Thana branch of Shibir in Jessore. On August 3, 2016, while returning home from organizational work, they were arrested by the police and taken to Chaugacha Police Station. From there, they were transferred to the Detective Branch (DB) office. After interrogation, they were taken to an isolated location, where their legs were shot in a similar manner, leaving them severely injured. Their eyes were blindfolded at the time. Initially, they were taken to the sub-district hospital, later transferred to Jessore District Hospital, and finally admitted to Dhaka’s Pangu Hospital, where they underwent prolonged treatment. Eventually, their legs were amputated, and they were transferred to Jessore Jail after recovering to some extent.
Shibir leader Abdullah Al Noman stated that over the past 15 years, the authoritarian government led by Sheikh Hasina has arrested, tortured, and killed countless leaders and activists of Islami Chhatra Shibir. In response to a question from journalists, Advocate Abdullah Al Noman confirmed that further cases would be filed in the tribunal against those responsible for the abductions and murders of other Shibir leaders and activists. He explained that since these four individuals survived and their tormentors have been identified, this specific case was filed. When asked about the identities of the accused, he declined to disclose any names but stated that 12 individuals were identified in connection with the Joypurhat incident and nine in the Chaugacha incident. However, for investigative reasons, he chose not to reveal their names, noting that more names might be added as other responsible parties are identified.
