Two Dhaka University students secure bail over ‘lynching’ Tofazzal

A Dhaka court has granted bail to two suspects in the brutal “lynching” of Tofazzal Hossain at a Dhaka University hall following their surrender.

Additional Chief Metropolitan Magistrate Zakir Hossain passed the order for Abu Raihan and Redwanur Rahman Parvez, both students of applied chemistry at the university.

"The defence sought bail following their surrender, which we strictly opposed. The court, however, granted their prayer after the hearing," said prosecutor Harun Ur Rashid.

Barely three weeks back, another suspect in the case, Rashed Kamal Anik, fled the court premises after submitting a bail prayer following surrender.

The development follows the recent acceptance of a supplementary chargesheet filed by the Police Bureau of Investigation (PBI) on Mar 10, which named 28 individuals.

The court had issued arrest warrants for 22 fugitives in the case.

Tofazzal, a 32-year-old man with a mental health condition, was beaten to death on the night of Sept 18, 2024.

The incident drew widespread outrage after video footage surfaced showing students feeding him rice in Fazlul Huq Muslim Hall canteen before systematically torturing him with cricket stumps and hockey sticks in a guest room, accusing him of mobile phone theft.

He was declared dead upon arrival at Dhaka Medical College Hospital at midnight.

The legal process saw a significant turn after DU authorities filed a "no-confidence" petition against the initial police investigation, citing it as “flawed”. A fresh probe by the PBI was ordered.

The PBI’s investigation, led by Additional Superintendent of Police Hannanul Islam, added seven new names to the original list of suspects, totalling 28 suspect students.

Among them are several former leaders of the Bangladesh Chhatra League and students from various departments, including physics, soil science, and nutrition.

Tofazzal, a resident of Barguna’s Patharghata, held a Master's degree in accounting from Barishal BM College.

Following the incident, his cousin, Asma Akhter, filed a separate case against 15 individuals, including the then-provost Prof Shah Muhammad Masum, which was later merged with the primary case filed by the university administration.