Milestone tragedy: Court dismisses case against Yunus, Asif Nazrul, air chief marshal, 13 others

A Dhaka court has dismissed a case filed against former chief adviser Muhammad Yunus, former law adviser Asif Nazrul, Air Chief Marshal Hasan Mahmood Khan, and 13 others over the deaths of students in a Bangladesh Air Force (BAF) training aircraft crash at Milestone School and College in the capital's Uttara area.

Dhaka Metropolitan Magistrate Ariful Islam passed the order today (7 May), rejecting the complaint petition, confirmed Bench Assistant Shahadat Hossain.

Earlier in the day, around 11am, the father of deceased student Uky Chhaing Marma, Usaimong Marma, filed the case with the court. The court then recorded the complainant's statement and kept the order pending.

Later in the afternoon, the court dismissed the petition.

Sources at the court said the case was dismissed under Section 203 of the Code of Criminal Procedure. The section allows a magistrate to dismiss a complaint if, after reviewing the complainant's statement and any inquiry findings, he finds no sufficient grounds to proceed with the case.

According to the petition, the individuals named as accused include Bangladesh Air Force Chief Hasan Mahmood Khan, Air Commanding Officer Morshed Mohammad Khair Ul Afsar, Officer Commanding Maintenance Group Captain Rifat Akhtar Jiku, governing body adviser of Milestone School and College Colonel (retd) Nurun Nabi, Principal Mohammad Ziaul Alam, Principal (Administration) Md Masud Alam, School Section Principal Rifat Nabi Alam, chairman of Rajdhani Unnayan Kartripakkha (Rajuk), Field Supervisor (Uttara) of Rajuk, Education Ministry Secretary Siddiq Zobair, Defence Ministry secretary, former Environment and Disaster Management adviser Rizwana Hasan and former Defence Ministry press secretary Shafiqul Alam.

The accused failed to properly discharge their official duties and, without ensuring safety considerations, permitted a mechanically defective F-7 fighter aircraft to conduct training flights over densely populated Dhaka city.

It further alleges that this negligence resulted in a catastrophic accident, causing massive loss of life.

The petition also alleges negligence in post-accident management, failure to implement public commitments regarding compensation, and attempts to mislead the public.

It further cites approval of educational activities in unsafe and unsuitable buildings as a contributing factor to the high casualty rate.

The petition claims that no effective steps were taken to identify or prosecute those responsible, while also alleging failures in compensation, rehabilitation, medical care, rescue operations, and emergency response, leading to permanent disabilities among several children.

The petition stated that the complainant's son died in the crash at Milestone School and College.

It also said witness Ashraful Islam lost two children in the incident and was left childless, while witnesses Md Rezaul Karim and Muhammad Abdul Samad each lost one child.

The petition argued that this caused irreparable loss to the families and extinguished their future line of inheritance.

It added that more than 200 men, women and children were seriously injured in the incident, with many permanently disabled.

The complaint described the lifelong burden placed on families caring for severely disabled children, stressing that the victims and their families bore no fault for the tragedy.

The petitioner further alleged that around 200 students were harmed because of the accused's negligence, and that the accused were individually and jointly responsible for the crash.

Although authorities publicly announced compensation of up to Tk5 crore for the families of those killed, along with compensation for the injured at a fixed rate, the complaint alleged that no affected person or family has yet received any compensation, amounting to a criminal breach of trust.

On 21 July 2025, at around 1pm, a fighter jet of the Bangladesh Air Force crashed shortly after takeoff, hitting the campus of Milestone School and College in Uttara, where classes were in session.

The crash killed 36 people - 28 students, three teachers, three parents, one staff member and the pilot.

The pilot, Flight Lieutenant Towkir Islam Sagar, who was on his first solo flight, managed to eject from the aircraft but later died from his injuries.

The incident sparked widespread public outrage over the conduct of military training flights over densely populated areas of the capital.

Urban planners and aviation experts also raised concerns about the construction of buildings in high-risk air corridors, attributing the issue to weak regulatory enforcement and poor urban oversight.