Chhatra Dal leader falls to death during police raid

A Chhatra Dal leader died after falling from the rooftop of a residential building during a police operation in Savar early yesterday.

The deceased was identified as Monowarul Hossain Bakshi, 29, vice-president of the Savar unit of Jatiyatabadi Chhatra Dal and son of Md Jafar Ali, a security guard at the Bangladesh Public Administration Training Centre.

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Saiful Alam, officer-in-charge of Savar Model Police Station, said officers from Pirgachha Police Station in Rangpur, assisted by Savar police, raided Jafar Ali’s flat at the BPATC Staff Quarters while searching for a missing teenage girl and her companion.

During the operation, Monowarul went to the rooftop. Police followed him, and at one point he fell from the five-storey building, the OC said.

A five-member committee has been formed to investigate the incident, he added.

Neighbour Russell Moni alleged that after hearing a loud noise around 12:30am, he saw Monowarul lying on the ground while a police member was on the rooftop. He claimed police left the scene shortly afterwards.

A doctor from the BPATC clinic was initially called to the scene. Following the doctor’s advice, he was rushed to Shaheed Suhrawardy Medical College Hospital for treatment where duty doctor declared him dead on arrival, he added.

Mahfuz Iqbal, general secretary of the Dhaka North unit of Jatiyatabadi Chhatra Dal, alleged that police left the scene instead of taking Monowarul to hospital.

Md Selim Ali, officer-in-charge of Pirgachha Police Station, said the missing girl and the young man were not found during the raid, as they had reportedly left before police arrived.

“Only Jafar Ali and his wife were present at the flat. While we were speaking with them, we heard a loud noise from outside. We found a young man lying on the ground. Jafar Ali later identified him as his son, Monowarul,” OC Selim said.