Court filing alleges deadly custodial abuse by Bangladesh Army personnel

A case filed on January 7th with a court in Saghata, Gaibandha, accuses eight army personnel of custodial torture leading to the deaths of two men, according to court documents obtained by Netra News.

One of the accused is a ranking officer, Major Javed. In total, 33 individuals are named as defendants, marking the first time formal complaints against security authorities have been publicly confirmed.

Although several suspicious deaths in custody have been reported across Bangladesh since September—including the fatality on Friday of a member of the Bangladesh Nationalist Party’s youth wing—this Saghata lawsuit is the first instance in which such allegations have resulted in a direct legal challenge. The government has promised an urgent inquiry into the Friday death.

Following the political turbulence triggered by Sheikh Hasina’s downfall, the army has been assigned certain civilian law enforcement responsibilities, including limited judicial powers, to compensate for what officials describe as a near-collapse of the police force.

Under domestic legislation in Bangladesh, custodial abuse is explicitly outlawed, unlike other alleged state crimes such as enforced disappearances, which are not always recognised by courts. However, fear of reprisal still deters families from pursuing legal action against security forces, particularly against military officers who often enjoy near-impunity.

The complaint, filed by Mosharraf Hossain Sweet, an Awami League–endorsed Chairman of the Saghata Union Council, appears to challenge the norm.

It alleges that a joint team of the army and the police raided Sweet’s home on the night of September 10th last year and arrested five people, including Sweet himself. Two of the detainees—Sohrab Hossain Apel and Shafiqul Islam—died later that day around midday in hospital. One of the deceased, Sohrab, was Sweet’s nephew; the other, Shafiqul, worked at Sweet’s household.

Sweet told Netra News that the two men were severely beaten.

“The joint forces searched my house and beat my nephew and my domestic worker to death,” he said. “They beat me as well.”

He further alleged: “They took one boy from my area … seized him from the marketplace and beat him. There was another boy, Rocky—he was beaten, too. After we were assaulted, we were taken to the hospital. Two of them died.”

Sweet claims he also sustained physical abuse: “They beat me a little… and stuck needles. They stuck safety pins in, too… They struck Shafiqul’s body with rifles in various places. They hit him with batons; they stuck needles into him.”

Shafiqul Islam’s wife, Mosammat Sahana Begum, says her husband had no political affiliations and was taken from their home and tortured: “They came to our house. They took him from inside and brought him to the Chairman’s place, where they beat him. There were around twenty or twenty-five of them.”

“I was at home, and my husband was at home. They came in, grabbed my husband from inside the house, beat him there and then took him to the Chairman’s house to continue beating him. After they beat him, they returned to our house again to loot,” she added.

When contacted by Netra News, the Inter-Services Public Relations office, under the Ministry of Defence, did not respond to requests for comment.

Among the 33 defendants, Mohammad Alamgir—another reported Awami League leader—is listed first. The remaining defendants, from the 26th through the 33rd, are army personnel of various ranks.

The complaint accuses the first 25 defendants of inciting the eight army officers to commit torture. It alleges that Shafiqul Islam was taken from a local market to Sweet’s home, where he was repeatedly struck with rifles and heavy batons, breaking his waist: “On the orders of Major Javed, Captain Akib struck his right foot with a rifle butt, rendering him unconscious.”

The filing states that the 31st defendant—identified as Soldier Omar—allegedly attempted to revive Shafiqul with electric shocks but was unsuccessful.

It also accuses army personnel of torturing Sohrab Hossain Apel to death, claiming that Major Javed used a rifle and a baton against him in the courtyard, with other soldiers joining in and fracturing his chest and legs: “They inserted needles into his right knee, below the knee, and into his big toe.” Although Netra News has not independently verified the allegations, police inquest reports appear to confirm the nature of the injuries.

Shafiqul Islam’s report notes injuries to his waist and right leg, along with visible blood on his head and fingers. Sohrab Hossain Apel’s inquest details bruising and clotted blood behind his right ear, as well as injuries to his chest, arms, and back.

Speaking by phone to the newspaper Desh Rupantor on the morning of September 10th, Dr Mohammad Asif, Resident Medical Officer at Gaibandha General Hospital, said Sohrab arrived in critical condition showing clear signs of assault, and died under treatment at about 12:45 p.m.

Sweet told Netra News that during the raid, the then–Additional Superintendent of Police (Gaibandha B Circle), Abdullah Al Mamun, attempted to intervene and stop the army personnel but was allegedly assaulted himself.

Contacted by phone, Abdullah Al Mamun declined to comment. Since the incident, he has been transferred twice—first to the Police Special Training School in Betbunia, Rangamati, and subsequently to the Naval Police in Chandpur, where he now serves as an Additional Superintendent of Police. A police officer who witnessed the events confirmed that army personnel had indeed assaulted Abdullah Al Mamun.

At the time of the raid, Shafiqul Islam was Officer-in-Charge of Saghata Police Station; he has since been replaced by Badsha Alam. When asked about the allegations, Badsha Alam maintained that no torture had taken place.

In an earlier interview with Prothom Alo, Ibne Mizan, Additional Superintendent of Police (Finance and Administration) in Gaibandha, claimed the two men died from “illness” while in custody.

Police have also filed charges under the Arms and Explosives Act against the five detainees, including the two who died.●