Bonya demands exhaustive investigation into husband Avijit Roy’s murder

Rafida Ahmed Bonya, the wife of slain writer-blogger Avijit Roy, has appealed to the government to conduct “proper and thorough investigation” into the murder of her husband.

In an op-ed column, written on Independence Day and published on bdnews24.com’s Bangla site, said she was dismayed over arrest of only one suspect a month into the killing in a crowded area.

Unidentified assailants hacked Bonya and Avijit, both US citizens of Bangladeshi origin, on Feb 26 evening near TSC intersection at Dhaka University.

Avijit died from profuse bleeding while Bonya lost a thumb.

“A radical organisation named ‘Ansar Bangla 7’ had claimed responsibility for the murder immediately after the incident.

“Yet after one month of the incident, except for the arrest of one suspect, there is no progress in the investigation,” she said.

Bonya, who is also a blogger, demanded of the government to make its stance clear on the gruesome murder of her husband.

She said the government was maintaining a stoic silence over the killing even as international community had offered help with the investigation.

“This is a very consternating and dangerous situation. Where are the leaders of ‘Ansar Bangla 7’ hiding? Why are they not being arrested or detained for questioning?”

The FBI is helping the Detective Branch of police in conducting the investigations.

The investigators have said they suspect that radical fanatics killed Avijit for his writings against fundamentalism and communalism.

The writer’s family has also blamed Islamist militants for the murder.

Police, so far, have arrested only Shafiur Rahman Farabi, an extremist blogger who in a Facebook post had threatened to kill Avijit once he returned to the country.

The investigators have also questioned BUET teacher Farseem Mannan Mohammedy. He had organised a gathering of writers at the Amar Ekushey Book Fair on Feb 26.

Avijit and Bonya came under attack when they were returning from that meeting.

Pointing out that even in the past there were attacks on the rationalist writers in Bangladesh, Bonya said failing to bring perpetrators to justice gave the terrorists a sense of invincibility and left the common people distraught .

“We demand that Bangladesh government weed out religious extremism and stop this culture of providing impunity to the killers of writers,” she wrote.