Boishakh 23, 1421 Rajab 6, 1435 Regd. No. DA 6238 Vol 2, No 36
TUESDAY, MAY 6, 2014 | www.dhakatribune.com | SECOND EDITION
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Body formed to probe RAB’s involvement
HC asks government to form probe committee n Nazmus Sakib
rul’s dead body from the Shitalakhya River that flows beside the city, Shamim took an about turn. He said Nur was the criminal behind the abduction and that he should be brought to justice. “It is true that Nur was my political associate. But I could never imagine that he could be such a ferocious killer, who could kill Nazrul,” Shamim told the Dhaka Tribune yesterday. According to Selina, sensing danger days before the abduction, Nazrul, who was also involved with the Awami
The High Court yesterday directed the government to form a seven-member committee, headed by an additional secretary of the Public Administration Ministry, to investigate the whole incident of killing of seven people in Narayanganj. A bench of Justice Md Rezaul Haque and Justice Gobinda Chandra Tagore passed the order after Shamim Sardar, a lawyer of the Supreme Court, placed media reports on the grisly murders before the court. Two officials each from public administration, home and law ministries should be included in the committee who are not below the rank of deputy secretary and they would be selected by the secretaries of respective ministries, the court said. The HC bench asked the committee to look into whether any member of any government agency was involved in the killings after abduction and submit its report along with the update on the probe within seven days after receiving the copies of the order. The bench also directed the Criminal Investigation Department to investigate the main case filed in this regard alongside the Detective Branch of police, Deputy Attorney General ASM Nazmul Haque confirmed the Dhaka Tribune. The government earlier shifted the charge of investigation into the murders from RAB to DB.
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The elite force is yet to decide on the number of its members to be questioned Islam Shaon n Ashif and Ahmed Zayeef Following allegations by Narayanganj ward Councillor Nazrul Islam’s relatives that RAB members were behind the abduction and killing of Nazrul and six others, the elite force has formed a body to probe the allegations. The four-strong committee formed yesterday is headed by Additional Director General (administration) Aftab
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PM FOR STERN ACTION
Uddin, confirmed Habibur Rahman, director of the force’s legal and media wing. At a protest rally in Narayanganj on Sunday, Nazrul’s father-in-law Shahidul Islam claimed that RAB members had accepted a bribe of Tk6 crore for the abduction. Yesterday he claimed that son of a lawmaker broke the deal with RAB in mid-April. Some local workers saw a vehicle, belonging to RAB 11, parked near the abduction site on the morning of the kidnapping, Shahidul said, adding that the RAB men also showed their identi-
ty cards to the law enforcers who intercepted them while speeding away with the victims after the abduction. Lt Col Tareque Sayeed Mohammad, the commanding officer of RAB 11 at the time of the kidnapping, was withdrawn from his post soon after the incident. A senior RAB official yesterday told the Dhaka Tribune that they were yet to decide how many members of the unit would be questioned by the committee. “If needed, we will issue letters to the accused RAB members for arranging meetings with them,” he said. On April 27, unidentified abductors kidnapped Nazrul, also a panel mayor, and his four aides, along with lawyer Chandan Sarker and his driver. The bodies of six victims were found floating on Shitalakkhya River on April 29, while another the following day. Although Nazrul’s wife Selina Islam had initially blamed Awami League MP Shamim Osman for the kidnapping, Selina, her father and also local lawmaker Shamim Osman later accused another ward councillor, Nur Hossain, of being responsible for the abduction and murders. PAGE 2 COLUMN 1
INSIDE News
6 A 15-bed private clinic and a poultry farm are operating in the same building, located few metres away from the office of police super in Gournadi. 5 I used to know a man in his early 30s who was abducted three times by the same people. Each time, he came out of their iron clutches by paying a ransom.
Abducted BNP leader Al-Amin’s mother Dasmin (left) cries on the shoulder Modina Begum (centre), mother of another kidnapping victim Mazharul Islam Russel, at a human chain in front of the Jatiya Sangsad Bhaban yesterday protesting the recent series of abductions and forced disappearances RAJIB DHAR
Shamim Osman makes an about turn Islam Shaon n Ashif and Ahmed Zayeef Nur Hossain, the prime accused in the sensational abduction and murder of Nazrul in Narayanganj, has suddenly fallen out of grace of Shamim Osman who is often called the “godfather” and linked with virtually every major crime in the port city. Narayanganj city ward Councillor Nur Hossain has always been known as a close associate of Shamim, a local lawmaker. Both of them have been dil-
igently involved with the politics of the ruling Awami League in Narayanganj. Soon after Nazrul Islam, another city councillor, was abducted on April 27, his wife Selina went straight to Shamim, who has a lot of influence in the city. Shamim reportedly told Selina that he did not believe that Nur could have abducted Nazrul. According to city residents, even at the time of the abduction, Shamim and Nur were hanging out at the local Rifles Club. However, after the recovery of Naz-
Survey: Most RMG workers happy with workplace safety n Mohammad Al-Masum Molla Contrary to common perception, a recent survey has found that a significant majority of garment factory workers are happy with their workplace safety, working hours and wage hikes. According to the survey conducted by Democracy International (DI) and funded by USAID and UKAID, more
than 80% of the respondents said the working conditions at their factories were safe. Over 60% said they had been receiving periodic pay raise and their working hours were fair. The respondents expressed that meagre arrangements for vacation, casual, sick and maternity leaves; job insecurity and low wages were some of the major problems that they had been facing.
Although the government has recently claimed that the RMG workers now are far more unionised than ever before, the study has found that nearly 90% of the participant workers were not members of any labour body. Just two-thirds of the surveyed workers said joining labour unions might ensure regular and on-time wages. In a report, the DI said the survey
was conducted for having “an in-depth understanding of labour issues, formation of labour union and activities, policy aspiration and political participation of garment workers in greater Dhaka and Chittagong areas.” The survey comprised a total of 1,508 face-to-face random sample interviews from 150 randomly selected PAGE 2 COLUMN 3