Death under tiger statue: People demand justice (video)

Angered over the tragic death of a man under a tiger statue at Karwan Bazar of Dhaka yesterday, people demanded justice.

Mohammad Ali (42), a rickshaw-van puller, was asleep beside the statue when it fell over him.

Locals complained that the statue has remained in neglect for a long time.

They have also complained that the statue, which was built before 2011 Cricket world Cup, is unrealistic and devoid of any artistic merit. Now, the unaesthetic statue ended up taking a life.

One of the two tiger statues at the capital's Sonargaon intersection fell on the road early yesterday, killing a man who was sleeping underneath. Photo: Star

Enraged people spoke out against the poor construction of the statue. They demanded punishment of the people who constructed the statue.

“If they used strong rods in the foundation, then the statue would not have completely topped over and the life would have been saved,” said one enraged woman who was present at the scene.

One of the two tiger statues at the capital's Sonargaon intersection fell on the road early yesterday, killing a man who was sleeping underneath. Photo: Star

Bhajan Sarkar, duty officer of Fire Service and Civil Defence, said the statue collapsed probably due to the weakness of its foundation.

Ansar Ali Khan, chief executive officer of Dhaka South City Corporation (DSCC), said a firm of one Mizan had constructed the statue on permission from the corporation, and “it was his duty to maintain it”.

He said they would form an inquiry committee and take action accordingly.

One of the two tiger statues at the capital's Sonargaon intersection fell on the road early yesterday, killing a man who was sleeping underneath. Photo: Star

Bhajan told The Daily Star that the tiger statue collapsed and fell on Ahmad when his rickshaw-van was crossing the statue around 3:45am.

The statue of the Bengal Tiger was built as a part of beautification project for the city.