Faisal Karim Masud, the prime suspect in the murder of Shahid Sharif Osman Hadi, along with his associate Alamgir Hossain, was sent to jail in West Bengal on Sunday after questioning by Indian police.
Faisal has denied any involvement in the killing.
The two were initially arrested on 8 March near the Bangladesh-West Bengal border in the Bongaon area by West Bengal Police’s Special Task Force (STF) on charges of illegal entry.
They were remanded for 14 days for interrogation. Following the questioning, both were produced before a magistrate court in Bidhannagar, North 24 Parganas, which ordered them to be held in custody for 12 days.
They are scheduled to appear in court again on 2 April. Health checks were conducted by police before their court appearance.
Speaking to reporters outside the court, Faisal Karim asserted, “I am not involved in Osman Hadi’s murder. I have been framed. There is no evidence showing I directly shot Hadi. I am being politically targeted.”
He added that at the time of the incident, he was in Bangladesh, noting that while CCTV footage shows him, it does not depict him committing the shooting. Faisal declined to answer questions about why he traveled from Bangladesh to India.
Earlier, Faisal Karim had released videos on social media claiming he was in Dubai and not involved in the killing, even sharing some flight and passport documents to support his claim.
On 21 March, another suspect, Bangladeshi national Philip Sangma, was remanded for 14 days by the court for allegedly assisting Faisal Karim and Alamgir in fleeing to India.
The STF will interrogate him in jail, and he is expected in court again on 3 April.
Osman Hadi, spokesperson of the Inqilab Moncho, was shot in Dhaka on 12 December last year. Hadi was flown to Singapore for advanced medical treatment but succumbed to his injuries on 18 December.
Investigation revealed Faisal Karim, a former leader of the banned student organisation Chhatra League, and Alamgir were on the motorcycle from which the shots were fired.
After the killing, the two reportedly fled to India via the Haluaghat border in Mymensingh. West Bengal Police confirmed their arrest nearly three months later.
Bangladesh’s Home Minister, Salahuddin Ahmed, stated that procedures for repatriating the suspects to Bangladesh are already underway.
Following the killing, Abdul Al Jaber, secretary of Inqilab Moncho, filed a case. On 6 January, Bangladesh’s Detective Branch (DB) submitted a charge sheet against 17 individuals, including Faisal Karim, Alamgir, Philip, and youth leader Taijul Islam Chowdhury Bappi, alleged to have orchestrated the murder.
Twelve suspects were arrested in Bangladesh, while in India, Karim, Alamgir, and an accomplice were apprehended. Additional charge sheets will be filed if further connections are found.
