No lawyer in Cumilla to represent Apratim murder accused: Public prosecutor
The state may appoint lawyers for the accused if no private lawyer agrees to represent them, says Public Prosecutor Kaimul Haque Rinku.
The Cumilla District Bar Association has decided not to represent the accused in the murder case of 13-year-old Ishayat Shahriar Apratim on humanitarian grounds, Public Prosecutor Kaimul Haque Rinku said today (22 September).
"If no lawyer agrees to represent the accused, the state will appoint one in the interest of justice," he said at a press conference on the case at Comilla University's conference room this afternoon.
He said the bar association had assured Apratim's parents that they would receive justice and a fair trial.
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"We have assured Apratim's parents that they will get justice and a fair trial. We urge law enforcement agencies to conduct a fair investigation and send the accused to court. We will make every effort to ensure justice for the grieving family," he said.
The public prosecutor said the investigation was progressing properly and expressed hope that justice would be served.
Nazmul Hasan, a student of the Bangla Department's 2020-21 academic year, described Apratim as a sociable boy and called for a fair trial.
"We are seeing some ambiguity over the ages of the accused. We request you to ensure a fair trial for Apratim's murder, just as justice was delivered in the Ramisa murder case," he said.
Comilla University Vice-Chancellor Shariful Karim urged lawyers to play their part in securing confessional statements from the accused following their arrests.
"Please ensure that no accused escapes punishment by taking advantage of the problems faced by the family," he said, calling for a speedy trial in Apratim's murder case.
Apratim, a seventh-grade student at Border Guard Public School, was the only son of Comilla University Bangla Department Associate Professor Dr Nahida Nahid and KM Firoz Shahriar.
He went missing on 18 September after leaving home with his mother's iPhone to take photographs with friends.
Police recovered his body the following day from a jungle in Kotbari near Comilla University. He had suffered severe head injuries.
According to Cumilla Superintendent of Police Anisuzzaman, police initially detained Saiful Islam Tuhin after CCTV footage showed him with Apratim on the university campus and later taking him towards the Sananda area.
Police subsequently detained Fahad and Kamrul based on information obtained from Tuhin.
At a press conference on 20 September, the SP said the three were directly involved in the killing and that the attack had been planned to steal Apratim's iPhone.
According to the SP, Apratim resisted when they tried to take the phone, after which Tuhin, Fahad and Kamrul repeatedly struck him on the head with bamboo sticks. Police later recovered the iPhone from Tuhin's home.
Apratim's father filed a murder case at Sadar South Police Station around 12:30am on 20 September, naming no accused.
Police later arrested Mohammad Siam, the fourth accused, whose involvement was still being investigated.
Police subsequently showed all four -- Tuhin, Fahad, Kamrul and Mohammad Siam -- arrested in the case.
On 20 September, Tuhin, Fahad and Kamrul were produced before a Cumilla court after expressing their willingness to give confessional statements. The magistrate gave them three hours to consider the matter before recording their statements, after which they were sent to jail.
