Perpetrators of Farooqi murder yet to be identified

The killers of TV show host and Islami Front (IF) leader Nurul Islam Farooqi are yet to be identified two months after his murder.

Gulam Mujtaba Dhrubobdnews24.com
Published : 23 Oct 2014, 06:44 AM
Updated : 23 Oct 2014, 08:50 AM

Police say they have not been able to gather any significant information from the three, including a woman, arrested over the killing.

From the very outset, detective police suspect the involvement of banned militant outfits Jam'atul Mujahideen Bangladesh (JMB) and Ansarullah Bangla Team. But they are yet to be sure which of the radical organisations were behind crime.

Meanwhile, the police are yet to interrogate the six Islamic show anchors, who have been accused in another case as the 'masterminds' of the murder.

Nurul Islam Farooqi, a presidium member of IF and affiliated to the Ahle Sunnat Wal Jamaat, was found murdered in his Dhaka residence on Aug 27.

He hosted two Islamic shows – ‘Shantir Pothe’ and ‘Kafela’ – on Channel i.
Police said miscreants tied up everyone at his residence before killing him.

Nurul Islam Farooqi (File Photo)

The family claimed extremists were behind the killing and that it was pre-planned.
The Islami Front leader was known for opposing the Jamaat-e-Islami and Hifazat-e Islam.
His youngest son Faisal Farooqi told bdnews24.com: "The police last came to our home around a month and half ago. We gave them all the facts and information they wanted. It has been almost two months, but the killers are yet to be arrested."
Faisal Farooqi filed a case with the police on the night of the killing, which the detective branch (DB) of police is investigating.
A Dhaka court, which admitted another case over the murder against six other Islamic show anchors, directed that it be attached to the case filed by Farooqi's family.
It instructed the police to simultaneously investigate the two cases.
IF's student affiliate, Islami Chhatra Sena’s Dhaka unit Secretary Imran Hossain Tushar filed the case, accusing six anchors of Islamic shows aired on radio and private TV stations.
They are NTV host Tarek Munawar, ATN Bangla hosts Arakanullah Haruni and Kamaluddin Zafrey, RTV and Radio Today host Khalid Saifullah Bakshi, Diganta TV anchor Kazi Ibrahim, and Bangla Vision's Mokhtar Ahmed.
The case accuses them as the 'masterminds' behind the murder of Nurul Islam Farooqi.
"The six ordered the killing of Farooqi. We have filed a case against them. But the police did not even interrogate them, let alone arrest," Islami Chhatra Sena leader Tushar told bdnews24.com.
On this note, the investigating officer (IO) Julhas Akhand told bdnews24.com:"Police will interrogate the six anchors when the killers will be arrested. They are on the suspect list and the police are keeping a close eye on them."
The police are in 'regular' contact with the victim's family and are working on to solve the mystery, claimed the IO.
Detective Branch's Deputy Commissioner Sheikh Nazmul Alam said that they are 'certain' that members of a radical organisation were behind the killing.
The police are now trying to identify 'them', he added.
"Investigations revealed that members of JMB and Ansarullah Bangla Team may have been involved. But the police are looking in to who took part in the killing," the Detective Branch official told bdnews24.com.
Police have already detained two from Naraynganj and another from Comilla over the murder.
The detainees include a woman named Mahmuda Khatun, who went at Farooqi's home a few hours before the murder.
Farooqi's family claimed that she was acting suspiciously then. But police failed to obtain any significant leads after interrogating her.
"We are disappointed, but still we are waiting for the perpetrators to be arrested," said Faisal Farooqi, the youngest son of the slain TV show host.