Fate of Bithar Murder Case
I am helpless, says KMP commissioner
Shahid Iqbal Bithar
Khulna Metropolitan Police (KMP) Commissioner Shafiqur Rahman yesterday said 'he had nothing to do' with the sensational Shahid Iqbal Bithar murder case as it is now lying with monitoring cell of the Ministry of Home Affairs. He said this while replying to queries by journalists at a view exchange meeting at the KMP headquarters in the meeting. Issues relating to recent rise in crimes like murders, extortions and robberies were also disussed at the meeting. "I would be happy if you do not raise any question about Jubo League leader Shahid Iqbal murder case any more. Because, I am quite helpless in this regard", he said. Charge sheet of the murder case is in the monitoring cell of the home ministry. The home ministry is now the sole authority to decide the fate of this case, the KMP commissioner added. Regarding crimes, he said some special measures had been taken to arrest their steady rise. Sixteen checkposts have been opened at 16 vulnerable points in the city to monitor activities of criminals and extremists. He admitted that 30 'most notorious' extremists of different underground parties recently came out of Khulna district jail on bail under political influence. Most of them are now committing different crimes like murders and extortions and blackmailing. Measures have been taken to track down the extremists, the KMP commissioner said. Sources said, Bithar murder case did not at all come up for discussion in the 69th meeting of monitoring cell of the home ministry held in the capital city on July 28. The matter was not even included on the agenda, they said. Shahid Iqbal Bithar, central vice president of Jubo League and KCC councillor elected from ward-24 was gunned down on the night of July 11 in 2009 near his residence at Musalman Para under Khulna Sadar police station. Fourteen people were arrested in this connection and out of which four extremists Akash, Shabe Kadir, Ferdaus Hiru and Shumon Hossain made statements to court under Section 164 confessing to their involvement in the murder. In their judicial confession they also named four top leaders of local ruling Awami League (AL) who acted as financier, planner and mastermind of the murder. "But there has been little move either by police or the ministry to arrest these four influential local leaders", lamented professor Runu Iqbal, wife of the slain Jubo League leader.
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