Parents cry at the very mention of Bishwajit

For the parents of Bishwajit, the past five years have been agonising.

Hardly a day passes when the memories of the killing of their 24-year-old son, Bishwajit Das, does not haunt them.

"Every so often when I close my eyes, the moments flash across my mind. It is like a burning flame inside me," said Bishwajit's grieving father Ananta Das, 55, who retired from his job of making sweetmeats in a village eatery one and a half years ago.

Bishwajit's mother Kalpana Rani Das breaks down in tears at the very mention of his name, Ananta told The Daily Star.

As the grieving parents in Shariatpur wait for justice for their son, the High Court today gives verdict on the death reference and appeals in the sensational murder case.

Bishwajit started his own tailoring shop in the old part of the capital around four years before he was murdered in 2012. The youngest of three siblings, he was his parents' favourite and always kept in touch with them.

But his life was cut short by the savagery of some Bangladesh Chhatra League cadres.

It was a cold winter morning on December 9, 2012. A countrywide blockade sponsored by an opposition party was in place.

While Bishwajit was walking to his shop at Shankhari Bazar, a group of lawyers were marching towards Bahadur Shah Park in support of the blockade.

A group of BCL activists of Jagannath University attacked the procession and beat up some lawyers, witnesses said at the time. In a few minutes, an explosion was heard nearby and the BCL men started chasing pedestrians.

Bishwajit, who was there at the time, ran for his life and hurried to the second floor of a nearby building. The BCL men hunted him down as he tried to take shelter in a dental clinic.

For about five minutes, they beat and hacked him indiscriminately, dragging him down to the streets. Some of them continued pounding on him as he tried to escape.

Bishwajit did manage to break free and cross the road, but collapsed.

Some onlookers then put him on a rickshaw that took him to Mitford Hospital in about 10 minutes. He gasped for air in the hospital for 15-17 minutes and then died.

The killing, much of which was filmed by reporters at the scene, shook the nation to its core as the clips and pictures appeared on the news. A political blame game started in no time.

POLITICAL BLAME GAME

Although Bishwajit's family said he was not associated with any political party, the then BNP acting secretary general Mirza Fakrul Islam Alamgir claimed Bishwajit was their activist on the day he died.

Two days later, the then home minister MK Alamgir said Bishwajit was a BCL activist.

The Daily Star and some other media outlets identified some of the young men who attacked the victim as BCL activists of JnU. But the ruling Awami League and BCL denied the fact.

As BCL central committee leaders started claiming that the murderers were not their men, MK Alamgir echoed the view.

Even the Prime Minister's the then press secretary Abul Kalam Azad alleged that BNP and Jamaat-Shibir killed people and shifted the blame on the ruling Awami League and its associated bodies.

"None of the alleged killers of Bishwajit is a Chhatra League activist,” he had said.

But on December 23, 2012, three of the accused confessed to the murder and said they were BCL activists.

"A HEINOUS AND DEPLORABLE KILLING"

The trial of the case began on July 2013.

On December 18, 2013, Judge ABM Nizamul Haque of the Speedy Trial Tribunal-4 sentenced eight BCL activists to death and 13 others to life in prison.

Of the eight, two are on the run while the rest are behind bars. Only two of those given life sentences are in jail now.

"It was a heinous and deplorable killing," the judge said, while delivering the verdict.

He also observed that footage of the murder that had been broadcast on national and international media shocked all. The brutality of the offence had tarnished the country's image before the entire world.

"Considering the gravity of the offence, the tribunal decided to hand down the maximum punishment to the accused in order to uphold justice," the judge said.

FUMING OVER THE FUGITIVES

Bishwajit's older brother Uttam Das, who is a tailor in Dhaka, said the family hopes the High Court would uphold the trial court verdict.

“We have nothing more to seek now. We have been demanding execution of the murderers for last five years and that is all we want... Why is it taking so long?” he asked.

Uttam expressed anger over the fugitives saying, "We heard that some of them have already left the country while several others are roaming around freely. Only eight were arrested right after the killing. No one was arrested later. Could it be impossible for the government to arrest at least some of them if it really wanted to do so?

"My parents are grieving every day. Sometimes they come to Dhaka but don't want to stay here for long.”

A bust of Bishwajit in front of the village home was built a month after his death. The family recently renovated it and put a shed on it.

"Every time I see the bust, his memories come back. I can't express the pain in words," said Ananta.

THE CONVICTS

Eight condemned are Rafiqul Islam Shakil, Mahfuzur Rahman Nahid, Emdadul Haque Emdad, GM Rasheduzzaman Shaon, Md Saiful Islam, Qayum Mia Tipu, Rajon Talukdar and Noor-e-Alam Limon.

Of them, Rajon and Limon are on the run.

Convicts sentenced to life in prison are AHM Kibria, Saiful Islam Saiful, Golam Mustafa, Alauddin, Obaidul Quader Tahsin, Imran Hossain, Khandaker Md Yunus Ali, Tarique Bin Zohur, Azizur Rahman, Al Amin Sheikh, Monirul Haque Pavel, Mosharraf Hossain and Kamrul Hasan.

Of them, only Kibria and Mustafa are in jail.