Happy if Rab men are tried

Limon at a Jhalakathi court alongside his mother yesterday. He does not have any cases against him now but he is unhappy that the people who maimed him have not yet been brought to book. Photo: Star

Limon Hossain, shot and maimed by a Rab team in 2011, could not rejoice at seeing the last case against him dropped yesterday.

His wait for justice was not over as those who left him crippled for life were yet to be tried. 

“I will be happy when the Rab personnel responsible for the shooting are brought to justice," he told our district correspondent after Jhalakathi Chief Judicial Magistrate Abu Shamim Azad relieved him of the charges.

Limon trying out a prosthetic leg, later that year. Photo: File

After shooting Limon, the Rapid Action Battalion filed two cases against him -- one for obstructing law enforcers from discharging duties and another for possessing firearms.

He got rid of the arms case on July 29 last year, a month after the government decided not to proceed with the cases.

The 19-year-old yesterday said the Rab wanted to frame him as a criminal. "But they failed and the truth came out finally. The court order proves that I am innocent."

His mother Henoara filed a case with Rajapur Police Station on April 10, 2011, accusing six Rab personnel of attempted murder and maiming his son.

Police secretly submitted the final report on the case to a court on August 14, 2012, saying they found no evidence and witness against the Rab personnel.

Henoara filed a “no-confidence” petition against the final report on August 30, 2012. A Senior Judicial Magistrate's Court rejected the report on February 13, 2013.

“My son's innocence has been proved but I've been waiting for the punishment to the Rab men who maimed my son," Henoara said yesterday.

Limon, a student of Gono Bishwabidyalay, demands the government bear expenses of his treatment and education as compensation according to the 2011 High Court order.

Following a writ petition filed by rights body Ain o Salish Kendra, the HC ordered the government to provide compensation for Limon.

National Human Rights Commission Chairman Dr Mizanur Rahman said the jurisdiction for such compensations is hardly found in the country. He, however, said they will pursue all available legal means to get compensations from the state for victims like Limon.

On the two cases, which the government decided to withdraw following his request, Dr Mizan said the charges have been proved false.

He added law enforcement agencies and trial courts have lessons to learn from these developments. “No innocent citizen should ever be harassed to satisfy the ego of a particular agency.”

Dr Iftekharuzzaman, executive director of Transparency International Bangladesh, said this is one step towards justice and now the perpetrators have to be brought to trail. 

He also called for compensation to Limon.

"We also call upon the government to take the responsibility to financially support Limon and his family until he completes his education and is professionally established enough to sustain himself and his family independently.”

Limon should also be compensated by the agency involved in this gross violation of human rights, he added.

On March 23, 2011, a Rab team shot Limon in the left leg at Shaturia village, taking him for a notorious criminal it was looking for. He was then a candidate of Higher Secondary Certificate examination.

The elite force then picked him up, sent him to a hospital and filed the two cases. It also produced a worn-out revolver and a used bullet cap as “evidence” against the poor, meritorious boy.

Four days after the shooting, the leg had to be amputated. All these incidents drew huge outcry from rights bodies and the media.

On July 9, 2013, the government decided to withdraw the two cases. To this effect, a gazette notification issued on July 11 that year by the law ministry said, "As per Section 494 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, the government has decided not to proceed with the cases."

It also read that the public prosecutor of Jhalakathi has been directed to take necessary steps for withdrawal of the cases.

After the Jhalakathi court passed the order yesterday, noted jurist Shahdeen Malik said, "It is clear that the cases were filed with mala fide intent.” Action should be taken against persons who filed such false cases.

Sultana Kamal, executive director of Ain o Salish Kendra (ASK), said, "It's a very good news…. We have been waiting for this moment for years.

Replying to a query through email, she said, "We all know justice delayed is justice denied, but considering the general situation in Bangladesh, we can say better late than never."

Nur Khan, a director of ASK, said it is constitutional right of Limon to get justice against tortures on him by a state agency. "The state must ensure fair trial of those involved in the shooting."