Court instructs authorities to track down women ‘involved’ in Primeasia murder

The judge says that the girls were present at the scene, and played a role in Parvez’s killing

A Dhaka court has instructed authorities to locate two women allegedly involved in the fatal stabbing of Primeasia University student Zahidul Islam Parvez in the capital’s Banani.

The order was issued on Wednesday by Additional Chief Metropolitan Magistrate Sanullah during a remand hearing for Hridoy Miazi. Hridoy is the joint secretary of the Anti-discrimination Student Movement’s Banani unit, and has been accused in the case.

The investigating officer, ASM Main Uddin of Banani Police Station, produced Hridoy in court and sought a 10-day remand to interrogate him in custody.

Dhaka Metropolitan Public Prosecutor Omar Faruq Faruqi argued on behalf of the state, saying that Hridoy’s involvement had been spotted through CCTV footage and university video recordings.

Faruqi also pointed out the need to determine whether the killing was politically motivated.

Defence lawyer Taslima Minu opposed the remand, claiming her client had no links to the incident.

“Hridoy is from the pharmacy department, while those involved are from other departments. He did not know Parvez and he has no connection to the girls either,” she told the court.

The judge then asked the investigating officer, “Where are the girls? Why haven’t you arrested them?”

Mainuddin replied that there was no reason to suspect them, and they had not been seen in any CCTV footage. He added that a student named Abu Zar Pias was believed to have orchestrated the incident and was currently being traced.

However, the judge insisted that the girls were present at the scene and played a role. “They were involved. Find them,” he ordered.

In Hridoy’s defence, his lawyer said that the FIR clearly names the accused, who have already been arrested and remanded. The CCTV footage does not show Hridoy’s involvement in the incident.

She argued that Hridoy was implicated due to his political leanings, and requested his questioning at the jail gate instead of a custodial remand.

After the hearing, the court granted a seven-day remand for interrogating Hridoy.

The case stems from an altercation that took place on Apr 19 at Primeasia University’s Banani campus, where Parvez, a student of the Textile Engineering Department, was fatally stabbed.

Witnesses said he was eating snacks at a nearby shop with friends when two recently-enrolled students, along with two students from the University of Scholars, accused him of harassment and reported the matter to the university proctor.

The proctor summoned Parvez, who explained that he had simply been laughing with friends and had not harassed anyone. He apologised when asked to do so.

According to Primeasia students, he was later threatened by other students from the English department and later attacked by a group of outsiders who stabbed him in the chest before fleeing.

A severely injured Parvez was taken to Kurmitola General Hospital, where doctors declared him dead on arrival.

Following the incident, Parvez’s cousin filed a case naming eight individuals, including two leaders of the Anti-discrimination Student Movement. Additionally, as many as 25 to 30 unnamed individuals were listed as accused.

The accused are Meheraz Islam, 20, Abu Zar Gifari Pias, 20, Mahathir Hasan, 20, Sobhan Niaz Tushar, 24, Hridoy Miazi, 23, Rifat, 21, Ali, 21, and Fahim, 22.

Police arrested the prime accused Meheraz in Gaibandha on Wednesday evening. According to the case files, Meheraz was the one to stab Parvez on the chest, which later led to his death.

A few hours later, Mahathir was arrested in Chattogram, marking the sixth arrest in this case within four days.

On Apr 21, Hridoy was arrested by RAB from Monairkandi village in Titas Upazila, Cumilla.

The day before his arrest, police arrested three others from the capital’s Mohakhali Wireless Gate. They are: Al Kamal Sheikh alias Kamal, 19, Alvi Hossain Junayed, 19, and Al Amin Sani, 19.

Though not named in the First Information Report, police said CCTV footage showed them at the crime scene, and they were later remanded after being produced before the court.