Gang greeted with salam and handshake before shooting Swechchasebak Dal leader
Collected Photo
At a location near Mirpur circle 10, miscreants first offered salam and shook hands with Saiful Islam Siju, Joint Convener of the Thana Swechchasebak Dal, before shooting him. CCTV footage shows that all the attackers are known to Saiful.
The footage shows Saiful entering a tea stall on Munshi Bari Road, adjacent to Senpara at Mirpur-10. Several people present there exchanged pleasantries with him. They shook hands. Exactly one second later, a young man wearing a cap and a check shirt aimed at Saiful and fired a shot. At that moment, a person standing next to Saiful pulled out a pistol from his waist and fired back in retaliation.
After the incident, locals detained a young man named Kaushar Bhuiya, also known as Shanto or SB (24), and handed him over to the police. A foreign-made pistol was recovered from him. Four used cartridges, two fresh cartridges, and one bullet caging were also found. He was produced in court today, Wednesday, and was granted a four-day remand.
Mirpur Police Station OC Hafizur Rahman told Agamir Somoy, "The arrested Shanto is a Chhatra League activist. He already has a previous case under the Arms Act. The attempt to kill Saiful was carried out as part of a long-standing plan. All the attackers were known to Saiful. Shanto is being interrogated on remand. Police hope to obtain more information. Drives are ongoing to arrest other involved individuals."
Local sources say that Saiful Islam Siju is the joint convener of the Thana Swechchasebak Dal under Mirpur Model Thana constituency. The attack occurred over a dispute regarding setting supremacy in the area. It is believed that prior enmity was also behind the incident. Saiful is severely injured but in stable condition, according to a report of a Bangla daily.
