'Framed' twice

Nikhil Joardar

He was apparently framed twice -- when he was alive and then after his death.

Nikhil Joardar, the tailor hacked to death in Dubail under Gopalpur upazila of Tangail on April 30, had landed in jail on allegation of making “derogatory comments” about Prophet Hazrat Muhammad (pbuh) four years ago. 

After his brutal murder, the so-called IS statement issued to claim credit for the killing also described Nikhil as a person who “blasphemed” against the Prophet.   

But according to his family members, friends and neighbours, he never said anything against the Prophet.

People who knew him believe he was framed for making “anti-Islam” comments in April 2012 after he had got into an altercation with two persons in the locality.

Abdus Salam, a homeopathy doctor and Nikhil's neighbour, told The Daily Star last week that he had once asked the tailor about the 2012 incident.

“His reply was simple: 'I respect Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) just as I respect Krishna. Why should I make any insulting comment about the Prophet?'"

Recalling the conversation, Salam adds, "He [Nikhil] told me that two bearded young men were gossiping outside his shop. They were making some vulgar comments. So Nikhil protested and said you two have beard. You should have respect for it. Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) also had beard and he never permitted such remarks."

According to Nikhil's wife Aroti Rani, following this incident, rumours went around that he had made derogatory remarks about the Prophet, subsequently sparking public anger and leading to the ransacking of his shop and house.   

Aminul Islam, Alamnagar Madrasa principal who is now detained, had filed a case against Nikhil with Gopalpur Police Station in 2012.

Arrested on May 2 that year, Nikhil was granted bail after two months in jail. He then went into hiding for a few days in fear of retribution.

The first information report (FIR) didn't mention anything about Nikhil's argument with the two unknown persons. In fact, most of the locals have no idea what he had said about the Prophet. The FIR only reads that he made some derogatory remarks about the Prophet.

According to his family members and acquaintances, Nikhil was a simple and an innocent man who would never make such comments. He was a calm and quiet person and would always be there whenever his neighbours needed help.

On April 30, two to three assailants on a bike took part in the killing on the roadside near his shop around 12:30pm, leaving the fifty-year-old dead on the spot, said police and locals.

The motive is not yet clear, but the attack resembles the targeted killings of secular bloggers, writers and people of different faiths and ideologies over the last few years.

“#ISIS claimed credit for murder of Nikhil Joarder, a Hindu, in Tangail #Bangladesh, saying he blasphemed Muhammad,” SITE Intel Group, which monitors and tracks terror activities, wrote on twitter after the killing.

The Daily Star could not verify the claim while the government maintains there is no organisational existence of the global terror outfit in Bangladesh.

Three days before his killing, Nikhil came home with a wound around his eyes. His wife suspected that somebody attacked him but he didn't say anything about it.

"He was scared and took a daylong rest. He also stopped visiting the local bazaar, fearing attack," she said.

Aroti always used to keep an eye on him, spending time with him at his shop for as long as she could. On April 30, just before his murder, she took a break at noon and returned home to finish cooking. The killers chose this time to attack him, she said.

Nikhil was the only earning member of his joint family. Two of his brothers died long ago and the younger one is mentally challenged. After losing the sole breadwinner, the whole family is now devastated. They are now selling things from his shop to survive.

RUMOUR

There is a rumour in the village that “before the killing, someone wrote on the wall of his shop, threatening that he would not be able to dodge death though he had received bail from the court”.

Aroti said that's a lie.

"These stories are making our life hell. This sort of rumour killed my husband and now we want an end to this. Some people say that I was there when three assailants came to our shop. These lies are making our lives even more difficult.”

Aroti filed a murder case against three unidentified persons.

Following the murder, police arrested three locals -- Alamnagar Madrasa principal Aminul Islam, Jamaat-e-Islami leader Rafiqul Islam and BNP activist Jhantu Miah.

"We are quite sure that Jhantu Miah was involved in this killing mission. Our informers told us that he had done a recce of the area before the murder,” says Saleh Mohammed Tanvir, superintendent of police in Tangail.  

“And the two others were arrested because both of them were involved in filing the case against Nikhil in 2012."