Constable arrested in fatal shooting of college student in Gazipur

A police constable in Gazipur has been arrested for allegedly shooting dead a college student near Konabari Police Station in Gazipur.

The constable, identified as Md. Akram Hossain, 22, was detained on Friday in Kishoreganj’s Paraile area, police said.

The victim, Md Hriday, 20, from Tangail’s Gopalpur, was an 11th-grade student at Hemnagar Degree College and worked as an auto-rickshaw driver in the Konabari area, according to police.

The incident occurred on August 5 during an anti-discrimination student protest in the Konabari area of Gazipur.

According to witnesses, Hriday was chanting slogans against the government when he saw police officers arrive and moved to the roadside. Members of the Industrial Police allegedly grabbed him, and after a brief confrontation, Hossain fired a shot from behind, killing him instantly.

Hriday's cousin, Md Ibrahim, later filed a murder case at Konabari Police Station, leading to Akram's arrest.

Subir Kumar Saha, Assistant Commissioner of Konabari Zone in Gazipur Metropolitan Police, said Akram was sent to court on Saturday afternoon.

He added that others involved in the incident would also be arrested.

The case filed by Ibrahim also accuses former Liberation War Affairs Minister AKM Mozammel Haque, Gazipur Metropolitan Awami League President Azmat Ullah, and former Secretary-General and ex-Mayor Jahangir Alam of directing an attack on the students by 250-300 unidentified men.

The case states that Hriday sought refuge in a nearby shop during the attack but was dragged out by police, who then shot him and tried to cover up the killing. Video footage of the incident, captured by bystanders, was circulated on social media, showing six policemen dragging Hriday into an alley, where one officer slapped him and another shot him in the abdomen.

The case names 57 people and accuses 250-300 unidentified persons of involvement in the attack.

Yunus visits injured students at NINS

Chief Advisor Muhammad Yunus has visited the National Institute of Neurosciences and Hospital in Dhaka’s Agargaon to enquire about the conditions of the people injured in the violence surrounding the quota reform movement.

He went to the hospital early on Saturday and met the students who were critically injured during the student-led uprising.

A statement, issued by the chief advisor’s press wing, said he conducted an inquiry about the conditions of the people who were critically injured by security forces during the student-led revolution in July-August.

The hospital authority told the advisor that at least 11 people, including eight students from universities and colleges, have been treated at the hospital. Four among them are receiving treatment at the hospital’s intensive care unit, or ICU. They suffered bullet injuries in the head.

Kazi Deen Mohammad, the director of the hospital, said the advisor saw the conditions of four students who were being treated in the ICU. Their conditions are improving, he added.

Earlier on Aug 8, Yunus visited Dhaka Medical College Hospital to meet people injured in the violence during the quota reform movement just after taking oath as an advisor.