27 January 2017, Fri, 8:28

Allegations of abduction against Tarek Sayeed galore

At least a dozen allegations of abduction, enforced disappearace and murder are there against former RAB-11 commander Tarek Sayeed, who has been sentenced to death only in Narayanganj seven-murder case.

Now, families of the victims of other incidents of atrocities expect some other mysteries will be unraveled and justice delivered.

Allegations have it that members of RAB-11 have been involved in numerous illegal acts in Narayanganj, Comilla, Munshiganj, Chandpur, Noakhali, Laxmipur, Narsingdi and Nababganj and Dohar areas of Dhaka dictrict.

On many occasions, no cases were filed.

Even when cases were filed, investigators said no proof of their involvement was found.

However, Monday's verdict of death sentence to 26, including a number of members of law enforcement agencies, has made families of the victims hopeful of justice -- that Tarek Sayeed would not get any privilege as the son-in-law of a sitting minister.

Saiful Islam Hiru, a former member of parliament and president of upazila BNP, and Humayun Kabir Parvez, president of town BNP, were abducted on their way to Comilla from Laksam in an ambulance. Their relatives filed a case afterwards, mentioning Tarek Sayeed as the number one accused.

Badiul Alam, lawyer of the complainant, said a team of RAB-11 intercepted the ambulance that night and picked up four. Later, they released the other two. The Laksam police denied taking an abduction case, leaving the families to file a general diary.

Afterwards, they filed a case with a Comilla court, which asked the police to investigate the incident.

However, the police said they did not find any involvement of the RAB members. When the victims' families expressed 'no confidence', the court asked the CID to investigate the case.

One and a half years have elapsed but the CID has not reported any findings. The court acted again, seeking an explanation, to which the CID said they were yet to get a permission to speak to the accused. The police did not submit a copy of the general diary the family had filed either.

Furthermore, they did not get documents regarding the previous investigation officers' quizzing of the witnesses.

"We demand justice. Let them be asked where my father is. We have been waiting for three years. We just want to know where our father is," Rafsan Islam, son of Hiru, told Prothom Alo.

"Everything will be clear if Tarek Sayeed is quizzed. He knows every single thing," said Shahnaz Akhter Akhi, wife of Parvez.

On 12 December 2013, RAB-11 laid seige to the residence of district BNP general secretary Sahab Uddin Sabu, according to a case statement. Two cars were torched in front of his home.

"My husband Iqbal Mahmud Jewel went out hearing that RAB had laid seige to Sabu's residence. After 15-20 minutes, sitting at my Sadar Hospital Road residence, I heard gunshots fired. A while later, we came to know that Jewel died on the spot. They did not even gave us the body," said Monwara Begum.

She demanded that Tarek Sayeed is not spared. They will feel relieved if the death penalty verdict is carried out.

Around the same time, Jamaat ameer Foyez Ahammed was reportedly thrown off the rooftop by RAB-11 men. His family had publicly claimed this earlier, but they do not want to talk about it anymore.

On 17 February 2013, businessman Tazul Islam was abducted in a microbus from Sonargaon, Narayangaj. Thirteen days later, his body was found in the river Meghna. His family on a number of occasions alleged that RAB-11 members abducted him.

Even an investigation officer told Prothom Alo that RAB-11 was involved in the dispute that led to his killing. But the police could not prove this for lack of proofs.

Sand trader Ismail Hossain was abducted from Kanchpur area on February 7 2014. His family filed a complaint on 19 November 2015, accusing Tarek Sayeed and 24 others. They believe Nur Hossain had Ismail murdered with the help of the former RAB-11 commander.

"The court has found Tarek Sayeed's involvement in brutal murders. So we can assume that he may have invovement in other killings as well. So all the cases against him should be properly investigated," noted lawyer Shahdeen Malik told Prothom Alo.

However, Mufti Mahmud Khan, director of RAB's legal and media wing, said, "If a case is filed, the law will find its own course. But at times we hear allegations that are baseless and fabricated."