A 70-year-old farmer, Lokman Sardar, has died from injuries sustained during a violent land dispute with his relatives in Sujanagar upazila.
Lokman passed away on Monday evening (February 16) at the Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujib Medical University (BSMMU/PG Hospital) in Dhaka. Aminpur Police Station Officer-in-Charge (OC) Mahabur Rahman confirmed the death on Wednesday morning.
The dispute centered on 1.5 bighas of land in Hogladangi Char, Gobindapur village. According to the case file, Lokman had recently sown crops on the land, which his cousin, Korban Ali Sardar, and his sons suddenly claimed.
On January 24, Korban Sardar and his associates allegedly arrived at the field with a power tiller and country-made weapons. They destroyed Lokman’s crops and, when he and his son Sajib attempted to intervene, beat them indiscriminately.
Lokman was initially treated at a private hospital in Kashinathpur before being moved to Enayetpur Khwaja Yunus Ali Medical College Hospital as his condition worsened. He was eventually transferred to the ICU at Dhaka’s PG Hospital, where he succumbed to his injuries.
Following the assault, the victim’s brother, Ramzan Sardar, filed a case (No. 16) against eight individuals on January 26. "We have held this land through inheritance for 50 years," Ramzan stated. "They hired outsiders to occupy it by force. I demand justice for my brother’s death."
The accused, including Korban Sardar and his sons, reportedly fled the area after news of Lokman’s death broke. OC Mahabur Rahman stated that the initial case will now be converted into a murder investigation.
"The accused are currently out on bail," the OC explained. "We have applied to the court to cancel their bail following the victim’s death. Further legal steps will follow the autopsy report."
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