Slain pir's body exhumed five months after burial, reburied under police guard

The body of alleged pir (spiritual leader) Mohammad Abdur Rahman, also known as Shamim Jahangir Kalandar, was exhumed from his grave in Kushtia's Daulatpur five months after his burial and taken to his shrine before being reburied at the original site under police protection today (5 September).

The body was reburied around 4pm in the presence of local administration officials, police said.

According to local sources, some followers of Shamim allegedly exhumed his body from the cemetery sometime during the night of Friday (4 September) and took it to the shrine, where it was placed again.

The incident came to light on Saturday morning, prompting police and administrative officials to visit the site.

Shamim's brother, Md Fazlur Rahman, said the family was unaware of who had removed the body or how it had been taken from the grave.

"We woke up in the morning and found out about the incident, then informed the police administration," he said.

Daulatpur Police Station Officer-in-Charge Khaledur Rahman said police went to the site after receiving information that Shamim's body had been removed from the cemetery and taken to the shrine.

"After discussing the matter with the deputy commissioner, the body was exhumed from the shrine and reburied at the previous burial site," he said.

No one had been detained in connection with the incident as of Saturday, the OC said, adding that intelligence surveillance had been increased. Those involved would be identified through investigation and brought to justice, he added.

Daulatpur Upazila Assistant Commissioner (Land) Pradip Kumar Das said he visited the site after receiving information about the exhumation and subsequent relocation of the body.

He said arrangements were later made to rebury it at the original cemetery following discussions with the deputy commissioner.

The OC said the situation was under control and there was no immediate risk of any untoward incident.

Shamim Jahangir, also known as Abdur Rahman, was beaten to death on 11 April after an agitated crowd attacked and set fire to his shrine in Philipnagar Union following allegations of Quran desecration.

On 13 April, his elder brother Fazlur Rahman filed a murder case with Daulatpur Police Station. The case named three people, with Muhammad Khaja Ahmed as the prime accused, along with 180 to 200 unnamed individuals.