UP chairman allegedly assaults Santal woman, sets home on fire in Gaibandha over land dispute

Local Union Parishad (UP) Chairman Rafiqul Islam, also a BNP leader, has allegedly assaulted a Santal woman and had his followers set fire to her house over a land dispute in Gobindaganj upazila of Gaibandha.

The woman was assaulted in the morning yesterday (3 January) while the fire incident took place later at night at Borotta village in the Rajabirat area of Shakhahar union of the upazila.

Family members said the victim, Philomena Hasda, 55, is currently undergoing treatment at Shaheed Ziaur Rahman Medical College Hospital (SZMCH) in Bogura.

However, the accused, Rajahar UP Chairman and Gobindaganj BNP leader Rafiqul Islam has denied all allegations. 

"The accusations against me are false and baseless," he claimed.

5 years later, justice still elusive for Gaibandha Santals

Philomena's son British Soren alleged that several young Santal men from the village protested Rafiqul and his people filling land with soil on the ancestral property of the Santals near the village at around 10am yesterday.

Rafiqul and his men beat and chased away one of the young men – Soren's cousin Nicholas Murmu. Rafiqul also attempted to hit Soren when he went to protest against the assault on Nicholas, said Soren, who was working in a nearby potato field at the time.

Soren alleged that when his mother Philomena intervened to stop Rafiqul, the chairman slapped her repeatedly on her ears and face. 

As a result, Philomena fell to the ground, and blood started flowing from her ear.

Around 11:30am, Soren's brothers took her to Gobindaganj Upazila Health Complex.

Later in the afternoon, she was taken to the SZMCH for better treatment following doctors' suggestions.

Meanwhile, at around 12pm, when Soren returned to the potato field, 20-25 followers of Rafiqul chased him all the way to his house and issued threats before leaving, alleged Soren.

Soren said they were with his mother at the hospital when they learned at around 11pm that the chairman's associates had set fire to their house. 

Although the Fire Service quickly extinguished the flames, one of the rooms was completely burned.

Talking to The Business Standard, Chairman Rafiqul said, "I bought the 16 decimals of land from local resident Abdul Malek in 2001. All the documents, including tax payments and land mutation, are in my name.

"Why would I assault them? And why would there be any incident of arson? We have absolutely no involvement in any of these matters."

Reached for comment, Gobindaganj Police Station Officer-in-Charge Bulbul Islam said they have heard about the incident. "Legal action will be taken after a thorough investigation."

On 6 November 2016, the Santals alleged that the police, local administration, local influential people and mill staff attacked their village in Gobindaganj upazila of Gaibandha district to evict them.

Exclusive Al Jazeera footage also appeared to show police helping set fire to a Santal home in the 6 November incident. 

Since then, the Santals have loudly protested against any infringement on their ancestral land. 

The ethnic community has marked 6 November with demonstrations. They have repeatedly called for justice over the killings, but the demands have gone unheeded.