4 Rajshahi University teachers murdered in past 12 years

Rajshahi University has witnessed murder of four of its teachers in the past 12 years.

Those killed were economics professor Mohammad Yunus, geology and mining professor Sheikh Taher Ahmed, sociology professor AKM Shafiul Islam and English professor AFM Rezaul Karim Siddiquee.

Siddiquee, the latest victim, was hacked to death near his house at Shalbaghan in Rajshahi City around 7:30am on Saturday.

Police suspect militants were involved in the murder.

Islam, a fan of the mystic poet Fakir Lalon Shah, was murdered in front of his house at Chouddapai close to the university on Nov 15, 2014.

A group named 'Ansar al Islam Bangladesh-2' claimed credit for the murder on a Facebook page hours into the incident.

Police said the claim was aimed at diverting the course of the investigation.

Anwar Hossain Ujjal, Convenor of the Rajshahi district unit of BNP's youth affiliate Jatiyatabadi Juba Dal, is among the 11 named in the chargesheet over the murder.

Ahmed went missing from the university’s residential area on Feb 1, 2006. His body was found in a septic tank of his house after two days.

His colleague pro-Jamaat-e-Islami teacher Mia Mohammad Mohiuddin, a leader of Jamaat’s student wing Islami Chhatra Shibir, caretaker of his house Md Jahangir Alam and another person were sentenced to death for murdering him.

The High Court upheld death sentences of the teacher and the caretaker.

On Dec 24, 2004, pro-Awami League teacher Yunus was hacked to death when he was taking a morning walk near his house beside the university at Binodpur.

A Rajshahi court sentenced Jama’atul Mujahideen Bangladesh (JMB) leaders Shafiullah and Shahidullah to death for the murder.

Their sentence was commuted to life in prison after reinvestigation.