C T Online Desk: Police say they have not found any clue about the assailants responsible for the death of Md Morsalin, who was fatally injured during the violent clashes in Dhaka’s New Market area on Apr 19.
According to witnesses and police, 26-year-old Morsalin, worked at a New Market clothing store and was struck by a rather large brickbat in front of the Nurjahan Market around noon that day.
At a press conference on Wednesday, Mohammad Mahbub Alam, joint commissioner of Dhaka Metropolitan Detective Police, said they have yet to identify the person who threw the brickbat at Morsalin. They are not even sure if it was a deliberate attempt to hurt the shopkeeper.
“For all legal intents and purposes, we will accuse those who instigated the mayhem for Mosalin’s death. We are working tirelessly to identify each of them,” he said at the briefing, which took place at the Detective Branch’s Minto Road office in Dhaka.
Mosalin died in the ICU of Dhaka Medical College Hospital on Thursday. His elder brother Nur Mohammad filed a murder case against 150 unidentified people the same day. The Detective Branch (DB) of Police is leading the investigation.
A native of Cumilla’s Daudkandi, Morsalin lived in the capital’s Kamrangir Char with his family. He leaves behind two children, aged 6 and 4.
ACCUSED IN NAHID MURDER ARE ABSCONDING
However, police say they have a better grasp on the murder case of Nahid Mia, a deliveryman who was also killed during the New Market violence.
Senior police official Mahbub claimed that his department has made significant progress in the investigation, and even identified the people who were specifically responsible for the deliveryman’s death.
Eighteen-year-old Nahid Mia was hacked with machetes on multiple occasions during the clashes on Apr 19 and succumbed to his wounds during treatment at Dhaka Medical College Hospital later that day.
Nahid worked as a delivery assistant for a company named Data Tech Computer on Elephant Road. His uncle, Md Sayeed, subsequently filed a murder case, accusing about 150 unnamed suspects last Wednesday. DB is heading up the investigation too.
“Police are hunting the suspects now. All I can say is that since the college dormitories are closed now, most of the suspects have either moved back to their homes or absconded,” he said.
There may, however, be an update on that matter soon, he added.
On Monday, Deputy Commissioner (DC) of Police Mohammad Faruk Hossain confirmed to bdnews24.com that the six suspects behind the killing of Nahid Miah are students of Dhaka College.
Multiple media reports, after assessing CCTV footage of the incident, also confirmed the identities of the perpetrators, who are members of the Dhaka College unit of Bangladesh Chhatra League, the associated student organisation of the ruling Awami League.
Mahbub, however, had declined to delve into the issue of political identity further.
“Well, I am not going to comment on the political identities of the suspects. As far as I know, Chhatra League does not have any official presence at the college now. I can, however, assure you that those who had committed this heinous crime while donning motorcycle helmets will be brought to justice,” he said.
The conflict allegedly stemmed from a feud between two food stores, in which several Dhaka University students became involved on Aug 18. The altercation boiled over and turned the bustling shopping area into a battleground for most of the following day.
More than 50 people were injured in the bloody skirmishes.
Along with the two murder cases, two more cases had been filed so far in connection with the clashes. In total, more than 1,500 people have been accused in the four cases.
Mokbul Hossain, a former president of the BNP’s New Market Unit, is the only suspect arrested in connection with the clashes so far. He and the others accused in the case face charges of inciting violence, rioting, arson and obstructing police work.
