A court in Dhaka has sentenced Asif Shikdar to death for the murder of his friend, Nasim Ahammad Imad Uddin, a BBA student of Manarat University, over a trivial dispute in the East Badda area nearly nine years ago.
On Tuesday, Tawhida Akhter, the judge of the Dhaka 7th Additional Metropolitan Sessions Court, delivered the verdict.
Tanzil Hossain Bhuiyan, the bench assistant of the court, confirmed the sentence, adding that the court also fined the convict Tk50,000. As Asif remains absconding, the court has issued both a conviction warrant and an arrest warrant against him.
According to the case details, the dispute originated on 5 November 2017 at around 9pm. Nasim was passing in front of a flexiload shop owned by Monir in the East Badda Post Office lane when people were shouting inside the shop.
When Nasim asked them to stop the commotion, a man named Ramzan, who was present there, told him they were betting on a televised game. Nasim forbade them from betting and shouting, which led to an altercation between them.
At one stage, Asif slapped Ramzan. Ramzan and others later went to Asif’s house over the incident and threatened them, and Asif also issued threats over the phone.
At around 9:30am the following day, Asif went out to do some market shopping. After coming downstairs, Asif stabbed Nasim. Nasim ran and collapsed under the building. His family members rescued him and rushed him to Dhaka Medical College Hospital, where the duty doctor declared him dead.
On the same day, Nasim’s father, Ali Ahammad Saifuddin, Deputy Vice President of Green Delta Insurance Company Ltd, filed a case at Badda Police Station, naming Asif, Ramzan, and Abdur Rashid, along with three to four unidentified individuals as accused.
Following an investigation, Inspector Abdus Sobhan of the Gulshan Zonal Team submitted a charge sheet on 30 September 2018, accusing Asif. As the allegations against Ramzan and Abdur Rashid were not proven, their exemption from the charges was recommended.
On 19 January 2022, the court framed charges against Asif and ordered the commencement of the trial. During the trial, the court recorded the depositions of 14 out of 20 witnesses.
An arrest warrant was issued against Asif on 19 May 2022 as he was absconding. Because of his fugitive status, Asif was unable to present a self-defence statement. Following the completion of arguments, the court delivered the maximum sentence on Tuesday.
