A lawmaker in the dock: Gazi Nazrul remanded over second wife’s death

Satkhira-4 lawmaker and expelled leader of Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami, Gazi Nazrul Islam, has been placed on a four-day remand in a case filed over the alleged abetment of his second wife’s suicide.
His first wife, Maksuda Islam, was granted one-day remand in the same case.
Dhaka Metropolitan Magistrate Mohammad Ehsanul Islam passed the order after Sher-e-Bangla Nagar Police Station Sub-Inspector Shamsuzzoha produced them before the court, seeking seven days’ remand.
The body of Gazi Nazrul’s second wife, Mariam Khatun, 19, was recovered hanging from a ceiling at a flat on the second floor of NAM Bhaban – a residential complex for lawmakers in Sher-e-Bangla Nagar – on Sunday evening.
Gazi Nazrul, along with his two wives, lived in the flat as a Member of Parliament.
Later that night, Mariam’s father, Masum Billah, filed a case with Sher-e-Bangla Nagar Police Station, accusing Gazi Nazrul and his first wife of abetting his daughter’s suicide. Another accused named in the case is Mariam’s maternal uncle, Obaidur Rahman, who previously served as Gazi Nazrul’s driver.
Masum Billah alleged in the case that his daughter had been subjected to physical and mental abuse after being forced to marry Gazi Nazrul at the direct instigation of Obaidur.

The tragic death came two months after a video allegedly depicting Gazi Nazrul in an intimate moment with a woman who was later identified as Mariam went viral on social media on 20 July.
Following the incident, on 22 July, Jamaat-e-Islami expelled Gazi Nazrul and requested the Speaker and the Election Commission to take necessary steps against him.
Police said on Monday morning that Gazi Nazrul and his first wife were arrested, while Obaidur remained absconding.
They were brought to the court at around 2.20pm under tight police security.
Police cited five reasons in support of the remand, including the accused persons’ presence at the house when Mariam died by hanging; determining whether they had provoked, pressured, threatened or otherwise driven her to commit suicide; arresting absconding accused Obaidur Rahman and questioning him about his role; and uncovering the central mystery surrounding the case.
During the hearing, Dhaka Metropolitan Sessions Court Public Prosecutor (PP) Omar Faruq Faruqi presented arguments in favour of the remand on behalf of the State, while defence lawyers, led by Advocate Mahbubur Rahman, opposed it.
Omar Faruq Faruqi argued that Mariam Khatun had been forced to marry Gazi Nazrul through inducements allegedly offered to her maternal uncle, Obaidur Rahman, and through the exercise of power.  
Claiming that Mariam had been subjected to physical and mental abuse, the prosecution said that although the case has been filed for abetment of suicide, whether there had been a murder plot behind her death remained a matter for investigation.
On the other hand, defence lawyers, including Md Mahbubur Rahman, representing Gazi Nazrul Islam and Maksuda Begum, pleaded for their bail and the cancellation of the remand.
Stating Nazrul’s political background, the defence argued that there is no logical basis for remand and that no specific grounds has been presented to justify interrogating them in custody. Both individuals are elderly and will co-operate with the investigation; therefore, the remand should be cancelled and bail granted, Md Mahbubur Rahman told the court.

Following arguments from both sides, the judge passed the remand order.
Speaking to the media, Masum Billah demanded a proper investigation so that justice could be served and the actual culprit punished.
Holding Obaidur responsible for the incident, Masum Billah quoted his late daughter as saying, “How can I show my face in public? He is my maternal uncle; I never imagined he would cause me such immense harm. Please forgive me. I trusted him even more than my own father. Because of that trust, I am suffering this fate today.”
Had that incident not occurred, Mariam would neither have needed to stay at the MP Hostel nor would the subsequent incident have happened, Masum Billah lamented.
Several handwritten letters were recovered from the building. Police said it would be confirmed after forensic examination whether they had been written by Mariam.
However, they contain accounts of relationship tensions, love and alleged betrayal, as well as Mariam’s emotional distress, describing her feelings about her position in the relationship, her grievances and her determination to preserve her self-respect.
Parliament Membership Remains Unresolved
The Election Commission will take necessary steps regarding Gazi Nazrul’s parliamentary membership after receiving an official reference from the Parliament Secretariat.
EC Secretary Akhtar Ahmed said this while talking to reporters at the Nirbachan Bhaban in the capital on Monday.
“No letter has yet been received from Parliament in this regard. Once a letter is received, action will be taken in accordance with the law,” he said.
Protests in Satkhira
Meanwhile, a protest procession and rally were held in Satkhira over the incident, with demonstrators demanding a proper investigation into the death and punishment for Gazi Nazrul.
The protesters made a symbolic effigy of him using straw and cloth to express their anger.
They later set the effigy on fire.
Rafiqul Islam, member secretary of the BNP’s Bhurulia Union unit in Shyamnagar, who took part in the protest, said, “Mariam’s death does not appear to us to be a case of ordinary suicide. We suspect that she may have been killed and then hanged. We therefore demand a proper investigation to uncover the actual circumstances surrounding the incident.”

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