IO report on ASI Emadul simply doesn’t add up
We are horrified, though not altogether surprised, that a police investigation has cleared ASI Emadul Haque – who ran over and killed two people while driving a seized bus in the capital's Gulistan in December 2021 – of any wrongdoing. The investigation officer, in his final report submitted to a Dhaka court on September 24, stated that there was no evidence that Emadul was driving recklessly, and that he had actually driven the vehicle in "good faith" to ensure the smooth flow of traffic. The police would have us believe that the incident happened as a result of a faulty engine and brakes.
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The IO further claims that the ASI had taken control of the bus when its driver fled the scene after causing an accident. However, two dozen witnesses had confirmed to The Daily Star at the time that the ASI had forced the driver out of an empty bus before driving it himself, after which he swerved violently, ploughed through a crowed, and killed two people, injuring two others, in addition to damaging vehicles and the guard rail of a footpath. Even if we accept the IO's narrative, that there was something wrong with the bus, there is still no justification for the ASI taking over the vehicle, particularly as the incident was not even under the jurisdiction of his police station in Paltan, and given that he had not informed the concerned DMP Wari division before doing so. And even if the bus had been abandoned by the bus driver (which, as we know from eyewitness accounts, is false), why did Emadul not have it towed, as is the standard practice, but instead drive it without checking whether it was safe to do so in the first place, given that it had already caused an accident?
What is truly alarming in this particular case is the clear bias that the police have shown in conducting the investigation, highlighting the illogic of tasking the same law enforcement to investigate allegations of crimes by one of its members.
No matter how the police try to spin it, the facts simply don't add up. If the ASI really did take control of the bus in "good faith," it may clear him of murder. But can he still not be charged for causing death by negligence under Section 304A, given that he had not followed due process and had taken unnecessary and unjustified risks in driving the bus?
What is truly alarming in this particular case is the clear bias that the police have shown in conducting the investigation, highlighting the illogic of tasking the same law enforcement to investigate allegations of crimes by one of its members. We have seen time and time again how cases of torture and extrajudicial killings have fallen through the cracks because the investigations were not conducted by an independent body. Under the circumstances, we urge the court to intervene in the matter, assign another law enforcement agency, and ensure that an impartial investigation is carried out. This is the least we can do to ensure justice for Shukur Mahmud and Raisul Kabir Tusher, who were killed that fateful day in 2021.
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