3 to die, 4 others get life for Tangail UP chairman’s murder

A Tangail court has sentenced three people to death and four others to life imprisonment in the murder case of Rafiqul Islam Faruk Hossain, former chairman of Dainya Union Parishad in Tangail Sadar upazila.

Additional Sessions Judge of Tangail Md Faisal Al Mamun delivered the verdict in the presence of the accused on Monday afternoon. Mohammad Saidur Rahman Swapan, additional public prosecutor (APP), confirmed the matter.

Among those sentenced to death is Saniyat Khan Bappa, a former vice-president of the central committee of Bangladesh Chhatra League.

According to APP Swapan, Rafiqul Islam was hacked and shot dead on December 20, 2013. He lived in a rented house in the Akurtakur Para area of Tangail town. At around 6:30am that day, he went out for a walk and reached the Akurtakur Bot Tola Bazar area when a group of people attacked him.

The attackers shot and hacked Rafiqul before fleeing the scene. Police recovered his body after being informed of the incident.

The following day, Rafiqul’s younger brother, Lavlu Mia, filed a murder case with Tangail Sadar Police Station. The case was initially investigated by Sadar police before the responsibility was later handed over to the Detective Branch.

After completion of witness testimony, the court sentenced the three convicts to death and fined each Tk 100,000. The four others were sentenced to life imprisonment and fined Tk 50,000 each.

According to APP Swapan, those who fail to pay the fines will have to serve an additional one year of rigorous imprisonment.