News Desk :
The family of Abrar Fahad, the BUET student killed by Chhatra League activists in 2019, have expressed their satisfaction over the verdict delivered by a Dhaka court.
After the verdict, Abrar’s father Barkat Ullah, who was present at the court, told bdnews24.com:
“This verdict should be upheld by the High Court. If the verdict is upheld, we will get peace. Abrar’s soul will only be at peace if the sentences are carried out quickly.”
Satya Prasad Majumder VC of BUET expressed satisfaction over the verdict and demanded speedy execution of the sentences.
Abrar’s uncle Mofazzal Hossain, who had accompanied him, told bdnews24.com: “We expect the decision of the lower court will be upheld in the High Court. We are not worried.”
Rokeya Khatun, Abrar’s mother, and Abrar Fayaz, his younger brother, have also expressed their satisfaction with the verdict from their home in Kushtia.
“We would like to express our satisfaction with the verdict and call for the sentences to be carried out quickly,” Rokeya said. “We wanted all of them to receive the death sentence. I respect the decision to award the death penalty to 20 suspects and life in prison to five others. But we also want Amit Saha to hang.”
“I will finally feel that we have received justice on the day these sentences are executed.”
Abrar Fayaz, the victim’s younger brother, was also satisfied by the verdict.
“But I have not seen the entire decision yet,” he said. “We will examine the final verdict and decide what steps to take.”
“The verdict has freed the country of stigma,” said lawyer for the prosecution Mosharraf Hossain Kajol.
“Based on the evidence, the judge came to the verdict he believed was right. As a public prosecutor and, on a personal level, I feel that such a thing should not happen again. Those who have been punished should have known the magnitude of the crime they committed.”
“Future generations, teachers and educational institutions should not forget this incident. They must be careful. They must stay alert and we must pray that this never happens again.”
THE DEFENCE RESPONDS
Monzur Alam, the lawyer of Amit Saha, said: “Amit was not present at the scene. He had gone home to his village for the puja holiday. He was not involved in the incident. His name was not in the First Information Report. He was later added as an instigator. The investigation officer admitted this during the investigation. We will take the matter to the High Court.”
“The court sentenced all three of my clients to death,” said Rezaul Karim Sarkar, a lawyer for convicts Majedur Rahman Majed, Hossain Mohammad Toha and Shamsul Arefin Rafat.
“We have not received a full verdict. After receiving the verdict, we will review it and appeal. The court ruled in favour of the victim. We will take the matter to the High Court. Hopefully, we will get justice there.”
Md Shahabuddin, the lawyer who represented Akash Hossain, said: “Someone beat Abrar with a stick from 9 pm into the morning. Someone punched him. He was hit with a cricket stump. It didn’t happen all at once. Abrar died due to lack of oxygen. He had a stroke because he could not breathe properly. When a person dies of stroke due to a lack of oxygen, it constitutes a different charge. So, the verdict was not correct.”
As the convicts were being led out to a prison van, one of their fathers began shouting: “The police and the administration must have been bribed to issue such a verdict!” Asked whose father he was, he said, “I am the father of all 25. I don’t accept this verdict.”
Agency adds: Satya Prasad Majumder, vice-chancellor of BUET, has expressed his satisfaction over the verdict in the murder of BUET student Abrar Fahad and demanded a speedy execution of the sentences, reports bdnews24.com
A Dhaka court sentenced 20 people to death and five others to life in prison for the 2019 murder of the student, who was beaten to death by Chhatra League activists.
“We believe the highest punishment was reflected in the verdict and it should be executed as soon as possible,” the vice chancellor said.
The verdict is a warning to the students in the colleges and universities across Bangladesh, said Prof Md Mizanur Rahman, student welfare adviser of BUET.
“A strong message will be disseminated through this verdict that the highest punishment awaits anyone committing such an offence in educational institutes. I believe it will reduce the torture of students in the residential halls to some extent,” he said.
Abrar, a resident of the university’s Sher-e-Bangla Hall, had criticised the government over a water-sharing deal with India on Facebook. He was subsequently taken to the room of a BCL leader on the night of Oct 6, 2019, and murdered.
The incident sparked fury among students and led to the authorities imposing a ban on student politics.
All of the 25 suspects eventually named in the case were BUET students and Chhatra League activists. Three of them were tried in absentia.
The trial began on Sept 15, 2020. Following the arguments from both sides, it ended on Nov 14 this year. The judge set Nov 28 for the verdict. The verdict was, however, deferred to Dec 8 as the court said it needed ‘a bit more time’ to finish writing it.
Accordingly, the suspects were brought to the court on Wednesday. The judge announced the verdict in presence of 22 suspects.
