The attack and subsequent killing of a suspect by another inside a courtroom in Cumilla in the presence of a judge has significantly rattled people and raised questions on the security provided by the police.
Lawyers, judges and defendants have alleged that police don’t take court security seriously at Cumilla and have no account of who comes and goes.
They are now questioning the logic behind putting unarmed policemen in charge of court security.
There are over a thousand lawyers at the court who receive clients everyday and more than 5,000 people reportedly visit the court premises.
There are three gates at the Cumilla court premises and people claim that the few policemen in charge of security at the first gate don’t even leave their seats without express emergencies.
Moreover, they are reportedly neglectful about the rampant snatching and stealing incidents reported everyday which has led to the number of crimes increasing at the very premises of justice.
“The incident of a murder in a judge’s chamber in a court room while it’s in session is an unprecedented one,” said former Cumilla Lawyers Association general secretary Syed Nuru Rahman told Bangla Tribune.
He added that the incident has brought to light the lack of security of the judge, lawyers and anyone related to a trial.
“The scenario is the same throughout Bangladesh and the government must ensure the judiciary’s safety,” he said.
Meanwhile, the organisation’s current President Abdul Momin Ferdous says that the questions raised on the role of police in maintaining court security is quite valid.
“At least four policemen are required to escort a suspect to the court for security but only one or two is designated,” he said.
He added that the unarmed policemen are not adequate security and often the officers on duty are those who should have retired.
“We are okay with them checking the lawyers while entering the court for the sake of security,” he said.
Responding to queries on the matter, Cumilla Court Public Prosecutor Jahirul Islam Selim said that the sensational incident has understandably rattled everyone in court
“We hope for more security on court premises from the police administration,” he said.
Cumilla police chief Superintendant Nurul Islam said that the two suscpects, Hasan and Faroque used to appear for hearings regularly.
“Nearly 5,000 people come and go at the court and it’s quite easy to enter the court with a knife with that crowd,” he said and added that they will be on the alert and try to search everyone including lawyers and judges while entering.
On Monday (Jul 15), a murder suspect stabbed another suspect to death in front of Additional District and Sessions Judge Fatema Ferdous.
According to Additional Public Prosecutor (APP) Nurul Islam said the deceased Faruk and his attacker Hasan were both suspects in a case filed over the murder of Haji Abdul Karim in Manoharganj upazila in 2013.
He said that Hasan started chasing Faruk with a knife while they were entering the court and at one point, Hasan stabbed Faruk indiscriminately as the latter rushed into the judge's room in a bid to save his life.
A severely injured Faruk was rushed to Cumilla Medical College and Hospital (CMCH) where the doctor declared him dead.