12 years on, family still awaits justice for Maulana Farooqi’s murder

The family of Maulana Nurul Islam Farooqi, an Islamic scholar and popular TV host, is still waiting for justice 12 years after his brutal killing.
Farooqi's son and case complainant Faisal Farooqi said, “Even after so many years, we have not received justice. Our whole family is now sinking in all disappointment as we lost hope. Still, we want those involved to be brought to justice soon.”
Faisal filed the murder case with Sher-e-Bangla Nagar Police Station after his father was hacked to death at his residence in East Rajabazar in the capital on 27 August 2014.
Ten years after the killing, on 5 November 2024, the Crime Investigating Department (CID) submitted a charge sheet accusing six people: Hadisur Rahman alias Sagar, Abdullah Al Tasnim Nahid, Rafiqul Islam Fardin, Abu Rayhan Mahmud Abdul Hadi, Mahmud Ibn Bashar, and Ratan Chowdhury alias Engineer Ripon alias Rakibul Islam Riyaz.
Of them, Bashar and Rafiqul are absconding, and arrest warrants have been issued against them, while Hadisur is in jail, and the other three are on bail.
According to court sources, the probe found the involvement of 12 people in the crime but recommended dropping six as their full names and addresses could not be established while it also sought the release of six others due to a lack of evidence.
According to the charge sheet, Farooqi was a follower of Sufi ideology and advocated shrine-based religious practices, while the accused allegedly followed the ideology of a banned militant outfit and opposed shrine-based practices.
The investigation found that a faction of JMB led by militant leader Jamai Faruk planned and carried out the killing over ideological differences. They allegedly killed the victim and also looted cash and valuables from the house after the murder.
The case was transferred from the Chief Metropolitan Magistrate Court to the Metropolitan Sessions Judge Court for trial last March after the court took the charge sheet into cognizance on 23 March.
The case is now pending for a hearing on charge framing before Dhaka Additional Metropolitan Sessions Judge Court-9, and 13 September is scheduled for further hearing, said court sources.
Regarding the case, defense lawyer Md Zaidur Rahman, representing accused Ripon, said there was no direct evidence against his client. “He was implicated based on vague allegations. We hope to get justice,” he said.
State counsel Aminul Islam Sarker said, "A lot of time was spent on the investigation before coming to our court for trial." The prosecution would try to conclude the trial swiftly by producing witnesses after charges are framed, he added.