Fazlul Haque Amini sued over mob-killing of Shamim in Satkhira

A case has been filed over the killing of Wahiduzzaman Shamim, who was beaten to death by a mob in two separate attacks over allegations of religious blasphemy in Debhata, Satkhira.

Fazlul Haque Amini has been named as the prime accused in the case, with allegations that he urged people to gather against Shamim through a Facebook Live broadcast.

The case was registered at Debhata Police Station around 11pm on Thursday. Jalil Sana, the victim’s elder brother, filed the case, naming 10 people and accusing another 200 to 250 unidentified individuals.

Debhata Police Station Officer-in-Charge (OC) HM Shaheen said Shamim died after being beaten by a mob on two occasions over allegations of religious blasphemy. His elder brother filed the case, and police operations are underway to arrest those accused.

The OC said police rescued Shamim after receiving reports of the first mob beating shortly before Tuesday evening (October 13) and admitted him to Debhata Upazila Health Complex. Later, at around 9pm, a group identifying itself as Touhidi Janata arrived at the hospital in a procession and assaulted him again. He was subsequently taken to Satkhira Medical College Hospital, where doctors declared him dead.

Shaheen said the names and identities of all the accused could not be disclosed at this stage for the sake of the investigation and arrests. However, Fazlul Haque Amini had been named as the prime accused. He is alleged to have used Facebook Live to mobilise a crowd with the intention of killing Shamim.

Shamim, 40, was the son of the late Shamsur Rahman and a resident of Baro Shanta village in Debhata upazila. The prime accused, Fazlul Haque Amini, is the son of Ruhul Amin and lives in South Parulia village in the same upazila.

According to local residents, Amini went live on Facebook alleging that Shamim had hurt religious sentiments and called on people to gather. Tensions had already risen after an audio recording containing remarks by Shamim described as anti-Islamic circulated in the area.

Following Shamim’s death, Amini said Shamim had made objectionable remarks about Allah, the Prophet and Islam. He claimed that Shamim had been killed in a mob beating by members of Touhidi Janata.

However, Shamim’s younger brother, Sagar Sana, said Shamim had completed his Kamil degree at a madrasa before earning his bachelor’s and master’s degrees from Jagannath University. He had two children. Sagar claimed that Shamim had developed mental health problems because of family difficulties and was receiving treatment.

Sagar said the family believed someone had recorded and circulated Shamim’s remarks during an argument with his wife. Following the incident, Shamim attempted suicide by drinking poison. He was later beaten for the first time while receiving treatment at the chamber of a village practitioner named Sabur in Kuliya. He was then taken to hospital, where he was attacked again.

Sagar said that even if Shamim had made objectionable remarks, he should have been dealt with through the legal process. “His being beaten to death like this cannot be accepted,” he said.