Barlekha-Juri (Moulvibazar) Correspondent: In Barlekha, Moulvibazar, it has been alleged that Surman Ali, a day laborer, has been in jail for five months due to two false political cases. His family claims that Surman has no involvement in politics, yet he has been imprisoned for a long time in political cases without any guilt.
Interestingly, the complainants of the two cases also state that Surman is not involved in the incidents for which the cases were filed. In fact, they now want Surman to be released. Local leaders of the ward BNP are also embarrassed by Surman being named as an accused and have also called for his release.
Surman’s relatives have alleged that after he did not support a certain candidate during the past Union Parishad (UP) election, a local individual intentionally included Surman’s name in a political case for harassment. Although Surman was granted bail in one case, he is still in jail due to another case. Meanwhile, Surman’s wife and children are suffering from hunger due to his prolonged imprisonment. Surman is the son of Aman Uddin from Mushelgul village, Barlekha Sadar UP.
Surman’s father, Aman Uddin, and mother, Anwara Begum, tearfully said, “Our son Surman earns a living as a day laborer. He has no involvement in politics. He has never harassed anyone. In fact, he always helps others in their time of need.” They said, “Because he did not support a candidate during the UP election, a local person has intentionally put his name in the case. Our son is in jail, and his wife and children are enduring great hardship. They are living without food.”
According to Surman’s family, locals, and sources from the case, on January 5, 2015, during a protest against the disappearance, killing, and torture of BNP activists, local Awami League activists attacked the leaders and workers of BNP and its affiliate organizations with weapons. Several leaders and workers were injured in the attack, and Youth Front leader Nurul Islam Tafadar was severely injured. Nearly 9 years later, on August 23, 2024, Nurul Islam Tafadar, the Assistant Organizational Secretary of the Barlekha Municipal Youth Front, filed a case against 38 leaders and workers of the Barlekha Upazila Awami League and its affiliates, including MP and former Environment Minister Md Shahab Uddin. Surman Ali was named as the 25th accused in this case. On November 21 of the previous year, Surman was arrested and sent to jail by the police. After spending about two and a half months in jail, Surman was granted bail by the High Court on February 4. However, on the same day Surman was released, the Detective Branch (DB) police arrested him again and handed him over to the Barlekha Police Station. Subsequently, the police arrested him in another case filed by Ahid Ahmad, a member of the youth welfare organization of Jamaat-e-Islami’s affiliated group, under case number (GR No. 144/24). Surman has been in jail since then.
The complainant in the case, Nurul Islam Tafadar, said, “During the BNP’s party program on January 5, 2015, Awami League activists attacked us. I was severely injured in the attack. I never received justice for this incident. After the fall of the Awami League, I filed a case against those responsible for the attack. When I tried to find out the name of the father of one of the accused, local person Faiz provided false information, leading to Surman’s name being included in the case. I later found out that due to a personal dispute during the UP elections, Faiz had inserted Surman’s name. Surman had no involvement in the attack. After learning this, I have been helping Surman in his bail process. However, the DB police arrested him again in another case.” He added, “The real culprits who attacked me are not being arrested, while innocent people like Surman are being detained.”
The other complainant in the case, Ahid Ahmad, said, “I have been a victim of many imprisonments in the past. For this reason, I have filed a case against a few individuals. However, Surman was not involved in the incident I reported to the police. His name is not even mentioned in the first information report (FIR). Yet, the police arrested him as an unknown accused and sent him to jail. I want Surman to be released, and I will offer any support needed for that.”
The president of the BNP’s 6th ward in Barlekha Sadar UP, Nijam Uddin, stated, “I have never seen Surman involved in any political activity. He works as a day laborer to feed his family. The complainant, Nurul, has informed me that Surman was falsely included in the case based on wrong information given by a local person. Many in the party are upset about his arrest.” He added, “Surman’s entire family is involved in BNP politics, so I feel embarrassed before them.” He further said, “The police are arresting innocent people, while real criminals are walking free, which is unfortunate.”
Former leader of Barlekha Upazila Chhatra Dal, Mostafizur Rahman, said, “Surman Ali is my neighbor. He is a day laborer and has never harmed anyone. I have heard that a local person included his name in the political case with the intent to harass him. This is unfortunate.” He said, “There are serious criminals walking free, yet an innocent person like Surman is in jail. His family is struggling without food while he is in jail.” He has extended his support to Surman’s family.
When contacted, the Officer-in-Charge (OC) of Barlekha Police Station, Abul Kashem, did not respond to the call.
