Dhaka, March 15 (IANS) As custodial deaths of Awami League members continue to rise in Bangladesh, another party leader died in custody at Keraniganj Central Jail in Dhaka, local media reported on Sunday.
The 55-year-old Shahnur Alam Shanto died on the night of March 13 while undergoing treatment at the National Heart Institute and Hospital in Dhaka during his incarceration.
Citing prison authorities and case details, Bangladesh's Bengali newspaper Daily Manobkantha reported that a group of youths formed a 'mob' outside Naruli Agricultural Farm in Bogra on January 4, detained, and beat Shanto before handing him over to the police.
He was subsequently imprisoned in Bogra jail in connection with an explosives case.
As his physical condition deteriorated, Shanto was reportedly transferred from Bogra to Keraniganj Central Jail in Dhaka on January 17.
According to Deputy District Magistrate of Keraniganj Prison, Tayyaba, Shanto was previously taken to the hospital multiple times after he fell ill.
Family members and locals claimed that Shanto was a physically disabled person, alleging that he was framed in a 'fabricated' case.
"On January 4, a group of youths attacked him, forming a 'mob' for upholding the ideals of Bangabandhu, and demanded a large sum of money from his family. When he could not pay the money, he was beaten up and handed over to the police. Although there was no specific case against him, the police arrested him in a fabricated explosives case," Daily Manobkantha quoted one of the locals, Rajab Ali, as saying.
He further alleged that the negligence and lack of proper medical treatment by the prison authorities led to Shanto's untimely death.
Calling for a judicial investigation into the incident, Shahriar Opel, organising secretary of Awami League in the Bogra district, said, "The deaths of imprisoned Awami League leaders one after another cannot be a normal occurrence. This is a gross violation of human rights."
Reports suggest that the latest incident brings the number of Awami League leaders who have died in Bogra jail in the past two months to six, fuelling public concern and raising serious questions.
Earlier this month, the Awami League expressed grave concern over what it described as ongoing mass arrests and custodial killings of political leaders and activists across the country, saying the actions violate fundamental rights and undermine justice and the rule of law.
The party alleged that the ruling Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) government has followed the path of the former Muhammad Yunus-led interim government by using state machinery to carry out "repression, torture, and suppression" aimed at silencing dissent and pursuing political vengeance.
"Mass arrests of political leaders and activists, along with deaths in custody, continue to occur. Repeated arrests, indiscriminate remand orders, and reports of custodial deaths are causing pain and anger across the nation," the Awami League stated.
--IANS
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