A 62-year-old Awami League leader was allegedly beaten to death following a long-running dispute over land and grazing grounds in a remote riverine char area of Bogura’s Sariakandi upazila.
The incident took place on Monday night near Nantur Mor in Pakuria Char, a remote area of Kajla Union along the Jamuna River. The victim, Moslem Uddin Pramanik, was a retired member of the Bangladesh Army and served as president of the Awami League’s ward unit in Kajla Union.
Moslem Uddin was critically injured in the assault and was initially taken to Sariakandi Upazila Health Complex. As his condition deteriorated, he was transferred to Shaheed Ziaur Rahman Medical College Hospital in Bogura at around 1am. He died while undergoing treatment at approximately 7.30am on Tuesday.
His wife, Sakhina Begum, subsequently filed a murder case with Sariakandi Police Station naming 18 people as accused. Police have so far arrested six suspects in connection with the case.
The arrested suspects have been identified as Haidar Ali Khan, 70, and his brother Gias Ali Khan, 75, sons of the late Asaduzzaman Khan of Char Shubhagachha village in Madarganj upazila of Jamalpur; Nantu Sarkar, 56, son of the late Dudu Sarkar of Char Pakuria village in Kajla Union; Sujon Mondal, 32, son of Mokhlesur Rahman of the same area; Mokhlesur Rahman, 55, son of the late Moyez Mondal; and Sohel Sarkar, 35, son of Elias Sarkar.
Police and local residents said Moslem Uddin had been involved in a longstanding dispute with local residents over land and grazing areas in Pakuria Char. The disagreement reportedly included issues surrounding the sale and use of land and grazing grounds.
According to local accounts, Moslem Uddin had gone to Pakuria Bazar on Monday evening. At around 8.30pm, after having tea, he began returning home. When he reached the Nantur Mor area, a group of people allegedly stopped him and attacked him.
He sustained serious injuries in the beating. Local residents rescued him and took him to the Sariakandi Upazila Health Complex. Later, as his condition worsened, he was transferred to the medical college hospital in Bogura, where he died the following morning.
Shahjahan Ali, Moslem Uddin’s brother and a member of the Kajla Union Parishad, said the victim had been involved in a dispute with Nantu Sarkar over land and grazing grounds. He alleged that Nantu and his associates attacked Moslem Uddin with locally made weapons while he was returning home from the market.
Describing his brother as a peaceful and harmless person, Shahjahan called for the swift arrest of everyone involved and demanded exemplary punishment for those responsible.
Sariakandi Police Station officer-in-charge A F M Asaduzzaman said the preliminary investigation indicated that the assault was linked to an earlier dispute over land in the char area.
Police recovered the body and sent it for post-mortem examination, the officer said. The six arrested suspects were produced before a court and subsequently sent to Bogura Jail.
Police are continuing efforts to arrest the remaining accused named in the case. Investigators are also examining the circumstances surrounding the attack and the roles allegedly played by each of the accused.
The case remains under investigation, and the allegations against the accused will be subject to the judicial process.
