Family members of murdered controversial Pir Lutfur Rahman are feeling helpless, as law enforcers have not been able to make much headway in the investigation into the killing of six persons in the Gopibagh area of Old Dhaka on December 21. Despite repeated assurances by the police that they were doing their best, family members alleged that there was actually no progress.
Talking to The Independent, Abdullah al-Faruk, son of the Pir, said: ‘‘Every day the police tell us that they are trying to find a clue to the murders. They have failed to make any arrest till now.’’
When asked whether they had received any threat from
the killers, he said: “No. But we are not staying at our rented house at present because we fear further attacks. The killers were also looking for me mentioning my name.”
The bereaved family members said Lutfur sometimes claimed to be “Imam Mehedi”, sometimes claimed to be the “Chief of Imam Mehedi’s Army” and gathered disciples under the banner of “Hisbul Mehedi”.
Several disciples said the Pir had told them that in the Quran there were no directives on praying five times a day. Instead, he prayed twice a day and did not offer “sejda” during prayers. Contrary to normal rituals, Lutfur believed in meditation followed by a prayer, they added.
Azizur Rahman Babul, who runs a vegetable shop in Dhaka, said: “The Pir wrote a book, “Abba Allah, Imam Mehedi Hujatullah”, and I became his follower after reading it. I have been his disciple for over 10 years.” According to Babul, Lutfur was against killing of animals, but he used to eat beef. “He fasted from September 9 to October 8 every year,” he added.
According to Colonel Ziaul Ahshan, Additional Director General (Operation) of the Rapid Action Battalion (RAB), some banned militant outfits might be involved in the killings. The RAB second-in-command, however, suspected that the militant group might have hired extremists from the south-western region of the country to carry out the killings.
Talking to The Independent on Thursdays evening , Lt Colonel Abul Kalam Azad, Director of the Intelligence Wing of the elite RAB, said: “Although we are looking at different angles, our main focus is on militant involvement in the killings. We are doing our best, but no significant progress has been made yet. As Pir Lutfur was involved in controversial activities surrounding religion, we suspect that he might have been killed due to religious conflict.’’ The RAB intelligence chief added that family members never told the law enforcers that there was any dispute over property.
Detective Branch sources told The Independent that they have not been able to make much progress in the investigation. After going through the phone call list of Pir Lutfur, the DB interrogated most of the persons who talked to him in the last one month, but they could not provide any information.
The DB is yet to confirm whether the killers brought any mobile phones with them. The killers hid the sharp weapons used in the crime. The investigators feel that it was the handiwork of professionals.
Law enforcers are suspecting the Ansarullah Bangla Team, a militant outfit which allegedly killed blogger Rajib Haider at his Palashnagar residence in the city on the night of February 15, 2013. This outfit’s chief, Jashim Uddin Rahmani, who is the Imam of Bashila Mosque in the city, and seven students of North South University were directly involved in the killing of the Ganajagaran Mancha activist, DB sources claimed. Harkat-ul-Jihad (Huji) militants are also on the list of suspects.
Courtesy of The Independent
