Sylhet court starts hearing witness testimonies in Rajan murder

The trial in the murder of Samiul Islam Rajan, a 13-year-old who was tortured to death in Sylhet, has begun.

The court of Sylhet’s Metropolitan Sessions Judge Akbar Hossain Mridha started recording testimonies of the plaintiff and Rajan’s father Azizur Rahman on Thursday, said Public Prosecutor Mafur Ali.
 
The court will hear the testimonies of 38 witnesses produced by the prosecution, said Ali.
 
Ten of the 13 accused were produced before the court on Thursday, he added.
 
On Sep 22, the same court indicted them for the murder of the boy. It had then set Oct 1 for the hearing of witness testimonies.
 
Rajan was branded a ‘thief’ and beaten to death in Sylhet’s Kumargaon on July 8.
 
His tormentors captured the entire atrocity on a mobile phone and released the video clip of the gory murder on the internet.
 
The 28-minute video clip, which went viral, created a firestorm on the social media.
 
Police submitted the charge-sheet on Aug 16, accusing 13 persons.
 
The accused are Kamrul Islam, his brothers Ali Haider, Shamim Ahmed, and Muhit Alam, local watchman Moyna Mia, Ruhul Amin, Tajuddin Ahmed Badal, Dulal Ahmed, Nur Mia, Firoz Mia, Ajmat Ullah, Pavel Ahmed and Ayaj Ali.
 
An arrest warrant was issued for Kamrul, Shamim and Pavel, who are still absconding.
 
After killing Rajan, Kamrul fled to Saudi Arabia on July 9, but expatriate Bangladeshis helped the local police to catch him in Jeddah several days later.