Driver, helper of truck that killed firefighter Nayan sent to jail, burial completed

A Dhaka court has sent truck driver Belal Hossain Sumon and helper Farhad to jail in a case filed over fire service worker Md Sohanur Zaman Nayan's death in a truck accident while trying to douse a terrible fire at building number 7 in the Secretariat.

Fire Service and Civil Defense Officer Nurul Amin Molla filed the case under Sections 98 and 105 of 'Road Transport Act, 2018' with Shahbagh Police Station on Thursday (December 26).

Later, the arrested driver Sumon (36) and helper Farhad (20) were produced before the court.

The students detained them on the spot on the road in front of the Secretariat at Segunbagicha in the capital on Wednesday (December 25) night and handed them over to the police.

Shahbagh Police Station Sub-Inspector (SI) Md Amirul Islam, the investigation officer of the case, said, “The three-tonne truck has been seized and the driver and helper has been sent to Dhaka Central Jail in Keraniganj through the court.”

Regarding not taking them on remand, the investigating officer said the accident occurred due to reckless driving. This is actually a solved case.

“When we found them, they were in a sober state; so, they were not subjected to dope tests,” he said.

SI Amirul said, “On information of the fire, the police went to the spot and blocked half of the road in front of the Secretariat. The other half of the road in front of the Osmani Auditorium opposite the Secretariat was open at that time, so that the fire service vehicles could easily enter through that side. The truck driver saw from the Zero Point intersection that there was a traffic jam ahead. If he wanted, he could have taken the Karwanbazar-bound truck through another road. But instead of doing so, he chose the road in front of the Osmani Auditorium. But that is not a problem either. The real problem is that he drove recklessly and caused the accident without paying attention to the crowd.”

The police have not yet found the owner of the truck registered in Pirojpur. The investigation officer also said that a letter has been sent to the BRTA there to find him.

Nayan was crossing the road with other fire service personnel to go to a water source to control the fire that broke out at the secretariat at around 3:30am on Wednesday. At that time, a speeding truck hit him from behind and seriously injured him. He was rushed to Dhaka Medical College and Hospital, where doctors declared him dead.

After the Namaz-e-Janaza at the Dhaka Fire Service headquarters on Thursday, Nayan's body was taken to his village home at Mithapukur upazila in Rangpur by ambulance around 9pm. The firefighter was buried at the family graveyard at around 10:30pm.

What punishment driver, helper can get

If the charge of ‘causing loss of life and property in an accident due to uncontrolled driving of a motor vehicle’ is proven, the driver Suman and the helper Farhad will be punished according to sections 98 and 105 of the ‘Road Transport Act, 2018’.

Section 98 is mainly a provision related to punishment, which states that if found guilty, the driver or conductor or helper of the motor vehicle concerned will be punished with imprisonment for a term not more than three years or a fine more than Tk 3 lakh or both. The court may order the payment of all or part of the fine to the injured person.

On the other hand, Section 105 is basically an accident-related offence, which states that if any person is seriously injured or dies in an accident involving the operation of a motor vehicle, this offence shall be tried in accordance with the relevant provisions of the Penal Code, 1860. However, notwithstanding anything contained in Section 304B, if the person is found guilty for seriously injuring or killing a person in an accident, the offender shall be punished with imprisonment for a term not exceeding five years or with a fine not exceeding Tk 5 lakh or with both.

However, Section 117 of the Act states that both Sections 98 and 105 are bailable offences.