A Dhaka court has granted a seven-day remand for former Dhaka Metropolitan Police (DMP) commissioner Asaduzzaman Mia in connection with the murder case of former Jatiyatabadi Chhatra Dal (JCD) general secretary Md Nuruzzaman Johnny.
On Thursday (12 September), Sub-Inspector Md Golap Mahmud, the investigating officer from Khilgaon Police Station, filed a petition seeking a 10-day remand at the Chief Metropolitan Magistrate's Court in Dhaka.
The hearing took place in the courtroom of Metropolitan Magistrate Saiful Islam, with the accused present.
The case, filed nine years after the incident, accuses Asaduzzaman Mia of involvement in Johnny’s killing under the guise of "crossfire".
On 2 September, Johnny’s father, Yakub Ali, filed the case at Khilgaon Police Station, naming 62 individuals, including former Awami League MP Saber Hossain Chowdhury. Asaduzzaman Mia is listed as the 12th accused.
Earlier, on the night of 11 September, members of the Rapid Action Battalion (RAB) arrested Asaduzzaman Mia from the Mohakhali flyover area in the capital.
Md Nuruzzaman Johnny was allegedly killed in a so-called 'gunfight' with police on 20 January 2015, while he was in custody. The case states that Johnny, along with his friend Moin, had visited Dhaka Central Jail on the morning of 19 January to see his younger brother, Moniruzzaman Hira.
On their way back, they were reportedly apprehended by individuals identifying themselves as Detective Branch (DB) personnel and taken to an undisclosed location where they were subjected to torture.
They were later transferred to the DB South office, where the torture allegedly continued.
Asaduzzaman Mia, who has now been arrested, was accused of orchestrating Johnny’s death in a staged crossfire, despite his family’s desperate search for him. His seven-month pregnant wife, Munia Parvin, along with relatives, had frantically searched various police stations, including Khilgaon Police Station, DB South office, and the DMP office.
The police, however, denied having detained Johnny. After two days of relentless searching, Johnny remained missing.
According to witnesses, in the early hours of 20 January, between 3:00am and 3:30am, residents near the Jorapukur playground in Khilgaon heard anguished cries for water and pleas to "save me" coming from a tortured individual. Resident Lovely Begum confirmed hearing the cries, while Sanjida Akhter Setu, another resident, recalled hearing screams for help around 3:00 a.m.
Shortly afterward, gunshots were heard in the vicinity. By dawn, witnesses, along with neighbours and family members, observed the police at the Jorapukur field. The police claimed that Nuruzzaman Johnny had been killed in a gunfight with officers, and his body was being transferred to Dhaka Medical College Hospital.
Johnny's body bore 16 bullet wounds on his chest, both hands, and other parts of his body, leaving him riddled with gunshots.
