A night of horror: Revisiting 6 October 2019, night of Abrar Fahad’s brutal killing
For nearly seven hours, the 21-year-old had endured relentless beating with cricket stumps and other blunt objects
Highlights:
- High Court upholds death sentences for 20 and life imprisonment for 5 convicts
- Three convicts — Jishan, Rafeed and Tanim — are absconding
- Jamie, another convict, escaped from Kashimpur High Security Central Jail in August last year
The CCTV cameras at Buet's Sher-e-Bangla Hall captured it all.
At 8:13pm on 6 October 2019, footage showed several now banned-Bangladesh Chhatra League (BCL) activists escorting Abrar Fahad, a second-year electrical and electronic engineering student at Bangladesh University of Engineering and Technology (Buet), from his room.
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His face showed confusion but no fear yet. He was seen casually walking and looking behind once.
By 10:07pm, another camera captured Abrar being carried out of the "room-2011" after being beaten.
He was still alive.
The CCTV footage resumed its grim story at 2:34am on 7 October, when the BCL leaders were seen carrying Abrar's motionless body down the stairs.
By 3am, police recovered Abrar's body from the ground floor of Buet's Sher-e-Bangla Hall.
Medical Officer Dr Md Mashuk Elahi declared him dead around the same time.
At 3:26am, the then-director of Buet's Student Welfare Council, Professor Mizanur Rahman, stood beside the body and had a conversation with the suspects before leaving.
He claimed the following morning that he knew nothing about the incident until the morning.
For nearly seven hours, the 21-year-old had endured relentless beating with cricket stumps and other blunt objects, as further investigation would reveal.
His "crime" was a Facebook post criticising a water-sharing deal between Bangladesh and India.
What happened inside room 2011
Soon, arrests had begun over the incident.
Those arrested over the murder of Abrar Fahad gave confessional statements in prison, detailing the brutal torture that ended his life.
Abrar was brought to Room 2011, known among the students to be a torture cell, along with his two mobile phones and laptop.
Among the BCL men, Mujtaba Rafid and Khandaker Tabakkharul Islam Tanvir were inspecting his phones as Muntasir Al Jemi was checking his laptop.
It was during this time that Mehedi Hasan Robin, former Buet BCL organising secretary, began slapping Abrar.
In his confessional statement, Robin said he started beating Abrar as soon as his roommate Mizan brought him to room number 2011.
After a while, he left the room, instructing others to continue beating Abrar.
He said the decision to beat Abrar came from a meeting at the hall's canteen in the beginning of October, where Abrar's roommate Mizan said he suspected Abrar of being involved with the politics of Chhatra Shibir.
Anik Sarkar, another Buet BCL leader, confessed that he and some other accused kept hitting Abrar with cricket stumps until he became motionless.
He said he beat Abrar indiscriminately in two phases and only stopped when he vomited multiple times.
Ifti Mosharraf Shakal, the then-deputy social welfare secretary of Buet BCL, said Anik hit Abrar the most.
He said Anik struck Abrar over 100 times with a stump in his knees, legs, soles of feet and arms.
Buet BCL leader Moniruzzaman Monir, who confessed that he was present till Abrar's death, said Anik was furious with Abrar. When Abrar didn't say anything about his alleged affiliation with Shibir, Anik hit him mercilessly.
Meftahul Islam Zion, another key accused, said stumps and a skipping rope were used to beat Abrar to death.
He said they pressed Abrar to give them the names of Buet students involved with Chhatra Shibir.
Abrar's mother repeatedly called him that night
Abrar's smartphone was in possession of the BCL men the whole night, as his mother was repeatedly calling him.
His mother, Rokeya Khatun, said he had come home on holiday 10 days ago and had wanted to stay on till 20 October.
As his exams were coming up, he decided to go back to concentrate on his studies.
Talking to the media, she said Abrar called her at around 5pm on 6 October when he reached the hall. That was the last time she spoke to her son.
Even after getting beaten to death, Abrar's friends were unable to inform his family as his phone and laptop were in possession of BCL members.
They were finally able to contact his younger brother Abrar Faiyaz from another Buet student who used to tutor him.
A nation's outcry for justice
The murder of Abrar Fahad triggered immediate and widespread protests. Buet students boycotted classes and exams, demanding justice for the murder of their fellow student.
The protests quickly spread to other universities and colleges across Bangladesh, with thousands of students taking to the streets.
Social media erupted with the hashtag #JusticeForAbrar, as citizens expressed their horror and anger at the barbaric act committed by members of the BCL, the student wing of the then-ruling Awami League.
Police arrested several BCL leaders from BUET within hours of finding Abrar's body, and the organisation responded by expelling 11 members from its Buet unit.
The then-prime minister Sheikh Hasina condemned the murder, promising "exemplary punishment" for the killers regardless of their political affiliations.
However, many pointed out that it was the culture of impunity enjoyed by BCL members that contributed to the atmosphere that made such a crime possible in the first place.
The Awami League government faced significant backlash, with opposition parties and civil society organisations highlighting how political muscle had infiltrated educational institutions, creating an environment of fear and intimidation.
The protests and unrest by the Buet students continued, where they demanded a ban on student politics in their campus, besides seeking capital punishment for the murderers.
The criminal case and trial
The murder case of Abrar Fahad moved relatively quickly through Bangladesh's often-slow judicial system, perhaps due to the high-profile nature of the crime and the clear evidence.
CCTV footage, witness testimonies, and confessional statements built a strong case against the accused.
On 13 November 2019, police submitted a charge sheet naming 25 people, all Buet students and BCL leaders or activists.
The trial began in the Speedy Trial Tribunal-1 of Dhaka, with the court examining 47 witnesses.
On 8 December 2021, the tribunal delivered its verdict, sentencing 20 accused to death and 5 others to life imprisonment.
The death row convicts were - Mehedi Hassan Rasel, Anik Sarker, Mehedi Hassan Robin, Ifty Mosharaf Sakal, Moniruzzaman Monir, Meftahul Islam Jiyon, Majedur Rahman, Muzahidur Rahman, Tabakhairul Islam Tanvir, Hossen Mohammad Toha, Shamim Billah, Nazmus Shadat, Muntasir Al Jemi, Mizanur Rahman, Mahmud Setu, Shamsul Arifin Rafat, Morshed Omorto Islam, Ehtesamul Rabbi, Morshed Uzzaman Jishan and Mujtaba Rafeed
The lifetimers were - Muhtasim Fuyad, Akash Hossain, Mowaz Abu Horaira, Omit Shaha and Istiaq Hassan Munna.
During the announcement of the verdict, Judge Abu Zafar Md Kamruzzaman of the Speedy Trial Tribunal said, "The killing has hurt all the people of Bangladesh. The tribunal has decided to give maximum punishment to all the accused in order to prevent any recurrence of the brutal murder of BUET's meritorious student Abrar Fahad."
Expressing satisfaction over the verdict, Abrar's father Barkat Ullah demanded the implementation of the verdict soon.
"For now, we are satisfied with the lower court verdict in the murder case," he said.
Following appeals against the trial court verdict, the High Court today (16 March) upheld the sentences, confirming death penalties for all 20 initially sentenced to capital punishment and life imprisonment for the remaining five convicts.
Among the accused, Jishan, Rafeed and Tanim are absconding. More recently, Muntasir Al Jamie, one of the convicts in the murder, escaped from Kashimpur High Security Central Jail on 6 August by breaking through the prison wall.
Ban on student politics and HC intervention
Abrar's murder prompted significant changes at Buet.
Following the incident, the university administration banned all political activities on campus amid widespread protests by students and implemented strict measures against ragging and other forms of harassment.
However, on 1 April last year, just two months before the fall of AL, the High Court intervened and stayed the Buet authorities' ban on student politics on campus.
"We have to comply with what the High Court order says and we cannot be accused of contempt of court," following the stay order, Buet VC told reporters at his office.
