4 August 2020, Tue, 4:03

Retired army major shot dead at Cox’s Bazar check-post; Secretary General demands exemplary punishment of the killers

Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami’s Secretary General and former lawmaker Professor Mia Golam Porwar has issued the following statement on 4 August 2020 protesting and condemning the recent murder incident of retired Army Major Sinha Md. Rashed Khan, who was shot dead by some police officials.

“On 31st July, retired Army Major Sinha Md. Rashed Khan was shot dead in reportedly "self-defence" by police officials who stopped the car at a check-post in Cox's Bazar's Teknaf upazila. He is the son of former joint secretary of the finance ministry and freedom fighter Mr. Ershad Khan. This brilliant military officer took his voluntary retirement from Bangladesh Army in 2018 and started working for a YouTube channel.

It is the duty of the law enforcers to arrest a suspect or to produce him/her before the court, if they have specific charges against the detainee. But without any probe, interrogation and trial, they cannot murder anybody. Such action clearly violates the spirit of human rights and rule of law. We have been observing with great concern that the number of extra judicial killings are increasing alarmingly in the country. According to a report of the human rights watchdog, Aain O Salish Kendra (ASK), some 143 people have been killed since last January and 35 people were killed only in the month of July only by the law enforcers in the name of crossfire. No body has the right of conducting such extra judicial killing. Retired Major Sinha Rashed Khan has become the latest victim of the deteriorating law and order situation. We are vehemently condemning this murder incident.

I am urging the concerned authorities to investigate the killing incident of Retired Major Sinha Rashed Khan and to ensure exemplary punishment of the involved personnel immediately.