HC asks govt why 2019 Keraniganj police shooting victim should not get Tk5cr compensation

The High Court today (17 June) issued a rule asking why the government should not be directed to pay Tk5 crore in compensation to Sahadat Hossain Shyamal, who was left permanently disabled after being shot in the leg by a police officer in Keraniganj in 2019.

The court also ordered the government to provide him with an interim compensation of Tk2 lakh and directed the Ministry of Home Affairs to implement the order.

The bench of Justice Khizir Ahmed Chowdhury and Justice Ziaul Haque passed the order today after hearing a writ petition filed by human rights organisation Ain o Salish Kendra (ASK), according to court sources.

The High Court asked the home secretary and other relevant authorities to explain why Sahadat should not be awarded Tk5 crore in compensation for his injuries.

Advocate Md Shahinuzzaman represented the petitioner during the hearing.

Sahadat, now 26, was seriously injured on 14 March 2019 when he was shot in the leg near the Kamarkanda police box under Sirajdikhan Police Station in Munshiganj.

ASK filed the writ petition after attaching newspaper reports published on 17 April 2019 about the incident.

According to the petition, police shot Sahadat in the leg without provocation at a checkpoint on the Dhaka-Nawabganj road in Munshiganj. Police later described the shooting as unintentional and apologised.

A 2021 report by the National Human Rights Commission called the incident tragic, saying the state could not avoid responsibility for a permanent disability caused by police negligence.

The commission recommended that the Public Security Division of the Ministry of Home Affairs provide Sahadat with Tk2 lakh in interim compensation, but the payment was never made.

It also directed the ministry to compensate the victim, identify the police personnel responsible, initiate departmental action against them, and report the outcome to the commission.

During subsequent proceedings, the Public Security Division requested reconsideration of the compensation recommendation, but the commission rejected the request.

According to information submitted to the commission, a police investigation found officer Saiful negligent, citing dereliction of duty and a lack of professional competence in the shooting incident.

As disciplinary action, he deposited Tk150, the cost of a rubber cartridge into the state treasury and was ordered to undergo physical training for two hours a day, five days a week.

Court documents state that Sahadat and his friends were travelling on three motorcycles from Ghatarchar in Keraniganj to Munshiganj when police signalled them to stop. While Sahadat and another friend complied, police pressed a pistol against his leg and fired.

The day after the shooting, police filed a case against Sahadat and five of his friends at Sirajdikhan Police Station.