Any opposition to witchhunt against Awami League is construed as loyalty to ousted government; can Yunus reverse trend and restore faith in police and judiciary?
While playing a Test match in Pakistan last week, former Bangladesh skipper and all-rounder Shakib Al Hasan was informed that he had been booked for alleged murder.
Shakib, a former lawmaker of Sheikh Hasina's Awami League, was among 147 people against whom charges in a murder case have been filed by one Rafiqul Islam in a Dhaka police station.
Islam has also named deposed Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, many former ministers and lawmakers including film star Ferdous Ahmed, and Awami League secretary general Obaidul Quader as accused in the murder.
Targeting the innocent
On August 5, Islam's son Rubel was shot during the student protest agitation over job quotas that plunged Bangladesh into political turmoil. He was wounded in the firing and died in a hospital after two days, the FIR said.
Islam's lawyer has demanded that Shakib be kept out of the Bangladesh team in all formats of cricket.
However, Shakib was not in Bangladesh on August 5 or at any time during the protests, since he was playing for Bangla Tigers Mississauga at the Global T20 Canada league in Brampton from July 26 to August 9.
Before that, he was in the US to play in the Major League Cricket, until mid-July.
Vested interests at work?
So, if the presence at the spot during a crime is an issue when one is accused of murder, Shakib clearly does not fit the bill.
Lawyers in Dhaka say it is also improbable that Shakib would try to have Rubel killed, considering the two did not know each other. They wonder if Rafiqul Islam would himself try to implicate Shakib in the case, or whether he did this at someone's behest.
The lawyers further say the case against Shakib has possibly been filed only because he was an Awami League MP and that it has hardly any merit.
It would be interesting to see how it plays out at the trial stage with the judges. Similar cases of murder have been filed against a TV journalist couple, Farzana Rupa and her husband Shakil Ahmed, both working for the pro-Awami TV channel Ekattor TV, and scores of others with no prima facie evidence of involvement.
Cricketer in trouble
The trend is ominous. Along with naming possibly some of those actually involved in violence against the protestors, many others like Shakib are being accused just because some powerful decision-maker or interest group close to the new dispensation wants to settle scores.
Shakib has his share of enemies in Bangladesh cricket; they envy either his stardom or his political connections or both. He is not available for a comment as he is in Pakistan and may want to consult his lawyers before speaking to the media.
Sources close to the star all-rounder say Shakib was never politically very active. He was offered a party ticket for parliamentary polls because the Awami League was looking for its share of stars, as many political parties do in the rundown to elections.
Repeat of Hasina tactics
Interestingly, the present interim government seems to follow the same template pursued during the Hasina regime — framing targeted individuals on trumped-up charges that may not necessarily lead to convictions but will be good enough to harass and intimidate the target for a long time.
For the interim government's chief adviser Nobel laureate Muhammad Yunus, who has been high on promising the rule of law, which he says was severely compromised under the 15 years of Hasina's regime, cases such as the one filed against Bangladesh's all-time great cricketer Shakib Al Hasan would be a litmus test of delivery.
If such cases lead to conviction even when physical involvement and connivance are difficult to prove, Yunus and his interim government would find themselves in the same boat as Hasina — they would be accused of fuelling vendetta rather than promoting justice.
Hundreds of cases
Hundreds of cases have already been filed against top Awami League leaders including former ministers.
By all indications, these will multiply in days to come. A possible ban on the Awami League is being discussed.
The volume and speed of filing of such cases raise questions about their veracity. The ousted Hasina already faces 51 cases, including 42 of murder.
Most of her senior ministers have been implicated in dozens of cases. Former foreign and information minister Dipu Moni, facing a murder case, was severely heckled and allegedly beaten up by pro-opposition lawyers in a court.
Litmus test for Yunus
The judiciary and the police, at all levels, seem to be under huge pressure. Any opposition to the ongoing witch-hunt against the Awami League elements may be construed as loyalty to the ousted government.
The way the Supreme Court chief justice and his judges had to resign after a two-hour ultimatum and gherao by thousands of student protestors has clearly left a message for all.
If someone as revered as Nobel laureate Yunus is not able to reverse this trend and restore faith in the police and judiciary, Bangladesh may be set to degenerate into a vendetta republic.
(The Federal seeks to present views and opinions from all sides of the spectrum. The information, ideas or opinions in the article are of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of The Federal.)
