A harrowing incident in Bagerhat’s Saberkhanda village on Friday evening claimed the lives of a young mother and her infant son.
Kaniz Surbana Swarnali, 22, is alleged to have drowned her nine-month-old son, Nazim Hossain Swarnali, in a water bucket before ending her own life by hanging, Bagerhat Additional Superintendent of Police (Sadar Circle) Md Shamim Hossain stated.
The child was the only son of Swarnali and her husband, Jewell Hasan Saddam. Saddam, who holds the position of president for the Bagerhat Sadar Upazila Chhatra League, has been imprisoned in Jessore since his arrest following the July Uprising on 5 August, 2024.
Family sources said Swarnali had been married to Saddam for about five years and had been struggling to secure his release.
Her brother, Shubho, said repeated failures to help her husband led her into severe mental distress
“First she drowned her son in a water bucket, then she hanged herself,” Shubho said.
At the time, the family, including Swarnali’s mother, brother, husband, wife, and child, was living together in Saddam’s home.
Swarnali was the daughter of district Jatiya Party leader Ruhul Amin Howlader, connecting the tragedy to two politically known families, though grief struck them all alike.
ASP Shamim Hossain said the bodies were recovered and sent to the morgue for autopsy.
“The exact circumstances of the killing will be revealed after the autopsy report,” he added.
Police said they are investigating the incident and preparing to file two cases – one for murder and one for unnatural death.
As evening fell over Saberkhanda, neighbours were left in stunned silence.
A child who had just begun his life and a mother overwhelmed by despair were both gone, leaving behind a household forever marked by sorrow.
