Rab was looking for notorious gangster Murshed
The members of Jhalakathi Rapid Action Battalion (Rab) were tense on March 23. They were in pursuit of one of the most notorious gangs in the southern region hiding along the border of Rajapur and Kowkhali police stations in Jhalakathi and Pirojpur districts. The area is crisscrossed by canals and rivers with thick vegetation on land making it a perfect hideout for criminals.
The gang, led by Murshed Jamaddar, 40, son of Belayet Jamaddar from Noakhali, has been eluding arrest for years. Murshed Jamaddar comes from a family locally infamous for its role during the Liberation War in 1971.
Murshed controls the wholesale trade of Phensidyl and other drugs for the region that, according to police, generate crores of taka for the underground cartel.
Rab could not take chances with criminal Murshed and his associates. Murshed is already convicted on various counts of crimes elsewhere in the country and absconding with at least 11 cases against him with Rajapur, Jhalakathi, Kowkhali, Satkhira and Shyamnagar. The cases include murders, armed robbery, extortion, possessing illegal arms, arson and so on.
The other reason for which the Rab personnel opted for extra caution was that their sources had just confirmed spotting Murshed and his associates by the river Sandhya, near where Limon was looking for his calf. Limon was in a wrong place at a wrong time.
The rise of Murshed and his brother Mizan, whose body was found in the Turag River a year ago, started during the last BNP tenure. Rajapur police officials who are investigating the cases against Murshed said during the BNP rule the brothers moved freely in the area.
When a top BNP central leader held a rally in Rajapur during the BNP-led four-party alliance rule, police went to the venue to arrest Murshed and his brother. “The brothers and their associates snatched arms from police and assaulted and humiliated Sub-Inspector (SI) Kamal in public,” said SI Ariful Islam of Rajapur Police Station.
Once the government changed and his brother was killed, Murshed became more desperate. But this time he operated from underground.
“He [Murshed] knows that his days are numbered,” said officer-in-charge of Rajapur Police Station Tofazzal Hossain, adding, “We have sources everywhere keeping an eye on his movement and it is a matter of time before he falls into our net.”
Courtesy of The Daily Star
