Police yet to make headway in Gaibandha Hindu businessman’s murder; IS ‘claims credit’

A case has been filed over the murder of shoe trader Debesh Chandra Pramanik in Gaibandha with police yet to identify any suspect.

Gaibandha Correspondentbdnews24.com
Published : 26 May 2016, 06:12 PM
Updated : 26 May 2016, 06:53 PM

Jihadist threat monitoring group SITE has reported that militant group Islamic State claimed responsibility for the killing at Gobindaganj Upazila.

But locals are puzzled with the gruesome murder as they said Pramanik was a simple person with physical disabilities who had no known beef with anyone in the locality.

Around 6am on Wednesday, three to four men barged into the 68-year-old’s shoe store at the Upazila’s Mahimaganj Bazar, and slashed up his neck and throat leaving him dead on the spot.

The body was left in the store until 10am as locals waited for police to arrive at the scene. The law enforcers later took it to Gaibandha Modern Hospital for autopsy.

Police detained one Nripen Chandra hours after the murder, but he was not named in the case Pramanik’s wife Ananda Rani filed Wednesday night at Gobindaganj Police Station, said OC Md Mozammel Haque on Thursday.

Several unknown persons were accused, he added. “We haven’t found any connection between Chandra and the murder. He is a petty thief and a drug addict. But we’ll seek remand to question him.”

After the murder, the family said that Chandra once had a dispute with Pramanik over some money. They suspect the killing could be a sequel to that.

But on Thursday, they said Chandra may not have been involved in the murder.

A police official told bdnews24.com: “The killers were professionals. They held Pramanik down on the floor and killed him with one blow (of a sharp weapon).”

His murder with sharp weapons bears striking resemblance to businessman Tarun Dutta’s murder in February in the same Upazila.

On Thursday afternoon, Gaibandha’s Deputy Commissioner Md Abdus Samad and Superintendent of Police Md Ashraful Islam visited the crime scene.

They pledged all necessary aid and security to the victim’s family.

Islam told reporters that they were giving this murder case top priority.