IT HAS been more than five months since the controversial January 5 elections. A new government is in place. The prime minister holds the home portfolio while a new state minister for home affairs has been appointed. A few heartfelt lines or two on his appointment could have been in order had it not been the result of a victory in an uncontested election — an election that may be acceptable constitutionally but not politically or morally.
The election did bring respite of a sort from a prolonged and painful period of political turmoil that had cost life and property, hampered the economy and left the citizens desperate and in despair. Arson attacks on public transport, uprooting of rail tracks, suspension of academic activities at educational institutions, price spiral of essentials, etc had well and truly become an everyday reality.
Now, to the relief of people at large, arson attacks on public transports are no more, the roads are alive and bustling, children are back to school. Of course, the impasse between the two major political camps, one led by the ruling Awami League and the other by the Bangladesh Nationalist Party, remains unresolved. Yet, most people may have thought that the calm, albeit uneasy, would last for a while. Little did they realise that a storm of another kind had been brewing all this while.
On April 27, seven people, including the panel mayor of Narayanganj, were abducted; their bodies, in sacks and tied to bricks, were found — six floating on the river Sitalakhya and the other in a ditch at Fatullah — three days later. The panel mayor and four of his associates had been whisked away from the Narayanganj court area; senior lawyer Chandan Kumar Sarkar and his driver had been picked up on their way to Dhaka.
The panel mayor, Nazrul Islam, belonged to the AL-led camp, as did councillor Noor Hossain, the suspected mastermind of the murders. The rivalry between the influential lawmaker Shamim Osman and the Narayanganj mayor Selina Hossain Ivy, both members of the ruling party, is believed to have a link with these gruesome murders.
As has been reported in the media, Nazrul used to be regarded as Osman’s man but had recently shown his support to Ivy by attending one of her meetings. Meanwhile, Noor Hossain and Hajji Md Yasin, the suspected killers, had remained loyal to Osman.
Noor seems to be a criminal of the worst kind. Starting off as an assistant to a bus driver, he rose through the ranks in the murky world of Narayanganj politics, courtesy of his ruthlessness. Though accused in several cases involving murder, extortion and violence, he had the licences to carry a number of firearms. On Friday, the police seized Phensidyl, liquor, Yaba tablets and weapons from his five shops in Narayanganj.
As much as people sympathise with the way Nazrul lost his life, it is difficult to ignore the fact that his track record was not any different from Noor’s. On the day of his abduction, Nazrul had gone to court to take bail in a case filed by Noor’s cousin Mubarak. There are at least 15 cases filed with different police stations against Nazrul, including a double murder, and countless general diaries. He had been given the death penalty for the murder of a lawyer in Dhaka but was eventually acquitted by the High Court.
Shamim Osman’s association with violence is well known and much written about. Adding a twist to the tale is the involvement of the relatives of yet another AL member, disaster management and relief minister Mofazzal Hossain Chowdhury Maya. Apparently Maya’s son did business with Noor while his son-in-law, a law enforcement official, was allegedly involved in carrying out the murders.
Overall, almost everyone alleged to have been involved the Narayanganj abductions and killings are people’s representatives in one form or the other and associated with the Awami League. Uncanny? Yes. Coincidence? Probably not.
The grisly incident provides a poignant reminder of the kind of people who hold power in Bangladesh, of the kind of people who are patronised by the ones in power, and the kind of people who are sometimes elected to power.
That’s not all though. Fingers have been also raised at the Rapid Action Battalion, the so-called elite law enforcement force, for its alleged involvement in these killings. RAB has been accused of participating in the kidnapping of these people by eyewitnesses. One of the RAB officials sent into retirement, of course, is the son-in-law of the minister.
The protests that followed the gruesome killings and the sense of insecurity that hangs heavy in the air perhaps manifest people’s realisation of the nature of the individuals that are supposed to look after public welfare, public safety and public security.
Of course, these accusations do not prove anything, not unless a proper investigation is carried out. These accusations do not carry enough evidence to bring down anyone as a culprit, or say that these crimes were committed at the behest of the state. However, it is the course of events and their uncanny relationships to the powers that be that may have prompted many to think up probable names and motives.
The tragedy here is that the government seems to be in denial of all that is happening around it and of the possible actors involved in it, whereas the common man can smell foul play involving people at the helm. Blaming the opposition or overlooking the culprits or delaying the process for partisan gains amounts to insulting the intelligence of the common man, making way for the accused to carry on their wrongdoings and reinforcing public perception that the suspects have unwavering support of the state.
Meanwhile, apparently in response to the strong public reaction to the murders, the home ministry banned dark or tinted glass on microbuses, effective from May 10 — plausibly, a good step. It is expected though the ban will be applicable for everyone, including some ministers who also have microbuses with dark or tinted glass.
As I write this piece, the police officer investigating the murders has been replaced because of the controversy raised over his alleged links with the accused in the case. The three accused RAB officials have also been discharged of their duties. The alleged payment of Tk 6 crore to RAB officials is also under scrutiny. So far so good.
The point is not what is being done now to control the damage. The point is not that steps are now being taken to try and get the killers. The point is graver than that.
We are talking about people who hold important positions and are directly tasked with the welfare of the people. We are talking about people we are supposed to look up to in times of despair, in terms of setting an example of, in times of seeking refuge when need be. Politicians and law enforcers are supposed to be people duty-bound to give us security. Citizens who are dependent on these people are losing confidence with regards to their safety and security.
While it was Nazrul today, for whom there has been a hue and cry, there are many more Nazruls out there who leave their homes in search of a livelihood and never come back. It is so rampant now that people are losing their trust in the system.
The system needs an overhaul. The mindset of the people in power needs to change. One of the persons under scrutiny, Shamim Osman, is a ‘representative’ of the people, and the accused, Noor Hossain, is also an elected representative. If this is allegedly their way of life, are we really safe in their hands?
The state has to have accountability to the people and ensure their basic fundamental rights. The state has to ensure corruption-free law enforcement agencies. The people in power have to take steps that will help citizens move forward with hope.
Too many killings, too much economic loss, too much instability surrounds the law and order situation, which seems to be deteriorating by the day. Too much loss has already cost the nation heavily. The fog has to be cleared and the vision made brighter for the people.

Konka Karim is features editor at New Age.