Mystery of Tahsif murder remains in the dark

One mystery after another has come up around the death of Mr. Tahsif, a former airline official. Even after a week, the mystery of his murder remains in the dark. On the night of the incident, Mr. Tahsif, his “friend like a younger brother” Mr. Dwip and his female friend Ms. Jerika Tasnim Disha entered the Nest Bar and Restaurant together.

While they were there, Mr. Dwip went elsewhere for 15 to 20 minutes and contacted someone. Investigators want to find out whom Mr. Dwip spoke to during that time. To learn this, the investigating officer asked the court for permission to bring Mr. Dwip back on remand for questioning.

Yesterday, after four days of remand, police produced Mr. Dwip in court. The investigating officer, Inspector Mr. Firoz Uddin of the Tongi outpost of River Police, asked for seven more days of remand. His application said this is needed to find the real reason and motive for the murder and to locate the place of the killing. It also said police need the time to recover evidence and to identify and arrest others involved.

After the hearing, the court of Dhaka Metropolitan Magistrate Mr. Md. Hasan Shahadat granted three more days of remand for Mr. Dwip. The court reporter said the remand application carried more details from his questioning. Mr. Dwip told police that he called Mr. Tahsif out of his home at around 3 in the evening on the day before the body was found, and they went out.

Later, Mr. Tahsif, Mr. Dwip and Ms. Disha, another suspect in the case now on remand, moved around many places. At one point Ms. Disha went back home. At about 12:40 am, Mr. Tahsif and Mr. Dwip reached the Machher Bosti area of Tongi. While they walked through Bajar Bosti toward a field on the bank of the Turag river, they saw a few men and split up.

The application added that Mr. Dwip gave some key facts during questioning. Police are keeping them secret and are checking them for the sake of the probe. Police said Mr. Tahsif was seen with Mr. Dwip and Ms. Disha at various places and at a restaurant before the incident. Going by the information so far, the last people seen with Mr. Tahsif before his death were Mr. Dwip and Ms. Disha.

Police need to check and study the CCTV footage they gathered with Mr. Dwip’s help. They also need to find out whom Mr. Dwip contacted for 15 to 20 minutes while at the Nest Bar and Restaurant with Mr. Tahsif. Mr. Shamsuddoha Suman, the lawyer for the state, argued in favour of remand. Mr. Monirul Islam and Mr. Mutasim Billah argued for Mr. Dwip and asked the court to reject the remand.

After hearing both sides, the court ordered three days of remand. A few days ago, in the first round, the court had granted four days of remand for Mr. Dwip. Mr. Tahsif Souri was widely talked about as the person who filmed the departure of the ousted Ms. Sheikh Hasina from the country. River Police recovered his floating body from the Rajabari Ghat area of the Turag about a week ago, in the afternoon.

On the evening before, he came down from his home at “Dwip’s call” and left on his own bike. On the next day, Mr. Dwip had said that they ate dinner together at a restaurant and that he parted from Mr. Tahsif in the Uttara Housebuilding area. After Mr. Tahsif’s father filed the case, police showed the young woman who was with Mr. Tahsif at the Nest Bar and Restaurant as arrested. A few days ago, the court also sent his female friend Ms. Jerika Tasnim Disha on four days of remand in this case.