Govt's failure will cause recurrence

Hundreds will suffer the fate of Comilla Victoria Government College student Sohagi Jahan Tonu if the government fails to try her killers, justice seekers said yesterday.

If justice is not delivered, many Tonus will be found lying on the streets in pieces, said Imran Habib Bhuiyan, president of Samajtantrik Chhatra Front.

He was addressing a solidarity rally protesting the "ill-efforts" to suppress killings, rapes, and lootings.

A faction of Gonojagoron Mancha organised the rally in front of the National Museum at the capital's Shahbagh.

"We've seen the ridiculous autopsy report which says there is no evidence of rape, and the cause of death was not found. Maybe in the next autopsy report, we would see nothing had happened!" said Habib, adding dramas were staged every day to suppress killings.

Sculptor Bhaskar Rasha said a panicky situation was prevailing in the country. "Those who are telling the truth are either being termed lunatic or facing incidents like forced disappearances."

Engineer Shampa Basu, general secretary of Samajtantrik Mahila Forum, said the government claimed that it was showing zero tolerance to militancy and women were empowered. "But we have seen people are being killed by militants and women are being raped in buses or murdered," she said. Because of the culture of impunity, protests have been held at different parts of the country, she said.

Imran H Sarker, spokesperson of a faction of Gonojagoron Mancha, said, "When we have been raising our voice for justice for Tonu, we saw the killing of a student of Jagannath University and the killings in Banshkhali."

"These took places one after another as there had been no trial of the incidents of the last one and a half years," he said.

He added that the effort to suppress the incidents was creating the scope for culture of impunity.

A second-year history student and cultural activist, Tonu was found dead inside Comilla Cantonment, about 400 yards from her house, on the night of March 20, according to her family.

Among others, former student leader Dr Mostak Ahmad and president of Bangladesh Chhatra Union Lucky Akter also spoke.