A visually impaired young man named Jalal Mia, aged 25, was reportedly tortured after being hung from a tree on suspicion of theft.
The incident took place on Thursday (4 December) afternoon in Dakshin Burdeo village under Companyganj upazila of Sylhet. Images and videos of the torture circulated widely on social media.
Jalal is the son of the late Ali Akbar from the same village.
His mother, Shiriya Begum, filed a complaint at the police station following the incident. Based on the complaint, police have arrested Arfan Ali (42), son of Usman Ali of the same village.
According to eyewitnesses, money belonging to Yunus was stolen from his shirt pocket early on Thursday in Burdeo village. On suspicion of theft, Yunus Ali, his brother Arfan Ali, and several others found the visually impaired Jalal asleep in a boat on the river. They detained him, tied him with a rope, hung him from a tree branch, and subjected him to medieval-style torture.
During interrogation, Jalal, who is visually impaired, told police: “I was asleep. Yunus and his son found me sleeping, tied me up, and took me away. Then they hung me from a tree and tortured me in different ways.”
Officer-in-Charge of Companyganj Police Station, Ratan Sheikh, confirmed the incident.
He stated that Jalal’s mother came to the station and informed him. Police were immediately sent to rescue Jalal, who was then taken to the upazila health complex for medical treatment.
Police have arrested Arfan Ali in connection with the incident. Others involved will be identified and brought under legal action.
Glive24/SS