Piling up bodies on van: ‘Police burnt one of them alive’
Eyewitnesses testified that when the bodies were burning, one boy was still alive. He was burned after the police poured petrol on him.
The Investigation Agency of the International Crimes Tribunal has found proof suggesting that six young protesters were shot and subsequently burned on August 5 by the police.
For all latest news, follow The Daily Star's Google News channel. Initially, the police opened fire on a group of protesters, resulting in the deaths of five individuals at the scene, while one survived for a short time.
The six bodies were then placed on a rickshaw van, wrapped in a carpet, and transported near a police vehicle.
The police subsequently poured petrol over the bodies and set them ablaze, and the surviving youth was burned alive while still suffering from gunshot wounds, as per the agency's findings.
ICT Chief Prosecutor Mohammad Tajul Islam said, "Eyewitnesses testified that when the bodies were burning, one boy was still alive. He was burned after the police poured petrol on him."
"Our investigation focused on the most brutal incidents. The police officers involved acted with extreme ruthlessness under instructions from the then government," the chief prosecutor said.
"This is clear evidence of crimes against humanity carried out during the July-August mass uprising, ordered by the then government and its higher officials," he added.
In connection with the incident, two police personnel have already been arrested. One of them is Constable Mukul Chokder.
Nearly a month after Sheikh Hasina fled, a video emerged on social media, showing several partially covered bloodstained bodies on a van with some policemen standing guard.
Bodies covered with bedsheets with hands stretched out could be seen in the nearly two-minute video, which The Daily Star verified was taken from near Ashulia Police Station in Savar.
Of the policemen standing beside the van, two were wearing police vests and seen throwing another body onto the piles.
In the video, Dhaka District North Detective Police (DB) inspector (investigation) Arafat Hossain was seen walking unarmed. Masudur Rahman, officer-in-charge (investigations) of Ashulia Police Station, was also seen in the video.
Arafat is now behind bars.
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