Wife faults slain husband Tanvir for joining militancy

Slain ‘militant' Tanvir Qaderi Shipar's wife Abedatul Fatema alias Khadiza has blamed her husband for their taking to militancy.

Police produced Fatema and two other female suspects, held during a raid on their house in Azimpur a month ago, before a court on Sunday and sought permission to grill them in custody.

During the hearing of the remand petition, Metropolitan Magistrate Md Noor Nabi asked the trio if they had anything to say in their defence, because they had no lawyer to represent them.

"We've made a mistake. We did it for our husbands. Sir, please forgive us," Fatema said in response.

Police said Tanvir had been coordinating Neo-Jama'atul Mujahideen Bangladesh, the group blamed for the July 1 Gulshan cafe terror attack, since the killing of the suspected mastermind of the attack, Tamim Ahmed Chowdhury, in a raid in Narayanganj in August.

Tanvir committed suicide during the raid in Azimpur on Sep 10, police said.

Fatema, suspected coordinator of Gulshan cafe terror attack Nurul Islam Marjan’s wife Afrin alias Priyoti and another ‘Neo-JMB’ leader Basharuzzaman alias Chocolate’s wife Sharmin aka Shaila Afrin were arrested in the Azimpur raid.

One of the three women received bullet injuries when police retaliated to the attack on them by the women with powdered pepper and knives. The two others tried to commit suicide by stabbing themselves, police said.

They were taken to the Detective Branch office earlier on Sunday after their release from hospital on Saturday.

Tanvir and Khadiza’s 14-year old son were also held during the raid and accused in the case under the Anti Terrorism Act.

The teenager has confessed, in remand, to his parents’ links with militancy, according to police.

His twin brother is unaccounted for.

Court Police General Recording Officer Saiful Islam told bdnews24.com that all the three female suspects had expressed repentance in court.

Trainee lawyer Sabbir Ahmed Sajeeb, who was present in court during the hearing, said, "Fatema confessed that she had trod this path because of her husband."

After hearing the remand petition, the court granted police seven days to grill the trio.

Tanvir from Gaibandha did bachelor’s in accounting from Dhaka College and post-graduation from a private university.

He had worked in two private firms before joining Dutch-Bangla Bank Limited’s mobile-banking department.

But Tanvir left the job after returning from Saudi Arabia in 2014 and launched his own business – Al Sakina Home Delivery Service.

He married Fatema, a Dhaka University student from Brahmanbarhia, in 2001.

Fatema had worked with the NGO, Save the Children, after graduation.