ACC files case against ex-Puthia OC for FIR manipulation

The Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) has filed a case against the former officer-in-charge (OC) of Rajshahi's Puthia police station, Shakil Uddin Ahmed, on charges of manipulating the first information report (FIR) of transport worker leader Nurul Islam murder case in 2019.

ACC Assistant Director Al Amin filed the case with its Rajshahi integrated district office on Sunday.

Confirming the matter, the ACC official said the commission found proof of manipulation in the FIR.

He said former OC Shakil, 48, made six people accused (the case was filed against eight people initially) and changed the description of the case statement.

A resident of Monkosha village in Shibganj upazila of Chapainawabganj, Inspector Shakil is now attached to the office of the Sylhet deputy inspector general. 

According to the case statement, Nurul Islam was the general secretary of the Road and Transport Motor Workers' Union of Puthia in Rajshahi. 

In the union election on March 24, 2019, he vied again for the post of general secretary and got the highest number of votes.

However, the election conducting committee tampered with the results and declared Abdur Rahman Patal the winner for the general secretary post.

Later on, Nurul and three others filed a case in this regard on allegations of irregularities in the election.

As a court in Rajshahi imposed an embargo on the activities of the newly elected committee, Patal and his associates threatened to kill Nurul.

The case statement said Nurul could not be traced since the evening of June 10, 2019, and his body was recovered from a brick kiln in Puthia the next day. 

His daughter Nigar Sultana on the same day filed a murder case against eight people -- Patal, 55, Awami League leader Ahsanul Haq Masud, 48, Mithu, 28, Golam Faruk, 55, KM Shahin, 60, Nurul Amin, 55, Md Matin, 25, and Md Abdur Rashid, 48.

As Nigar alleged the then OC Shakil was involved in manipulating the election results, the police official did not record the FIR and asked Nigar to submit it afresh after omitting the part.

However, Nigar again filed the FIR and OC Shakil received it. She also signed on some blank papers upon being asked by the OC.

Later, the police submitted an FIR of the murder case to the trial court, dropping the names of Patal and Masud.

Nigar filed a writ petition with the High Court challenging the manipulation of the FIR.

The High Court directed the chief judicial magistrate of Rajshahi to conduct an enquiry into the allegation.

The then chief judicial magistrate Mehedi Hasan Talukder submitted a report to the High Court, citing the role of OC Shakil in tampering with the FIR. 

Based on the judicial probe, the High Court on December 1, 2019, directed the ACC to take the next course of legal action.