Osman Hadi Murder Case: Inqilab Mancho rejects police charge sheet
Staff Reporter :
The Inqilab Mancha has rejected the investigation report, or charge sheet, submitted by police in the murder case of its spokesperson Sharif Osman Hadi and announced nationwide protest marches and brief rallies on Friday, demanding a proper investigation and justice.
The announcement came at an emergency press conference held at Madhur Canteen on the Dhaka University campus on Thursday, addressed by Inqilab Mancha Member Secretary Abdullah Al Jaber.
“This murder cannot be left hanging like the Sagar-Runi case,” Jaber told reporters. “Tomorrow, protest programmes will be held across the country at district, upazila and village levels.
If there is still no visible progress towards justice, we will announce tougher programmes, including encircling the Secretariat or the parliament building.” Earlier in the day, a Dhaka court accepted a no-confidence (naraji) petition filed by the organisation challenging the police investigation and ordered a reinvestigation of the case.
At the press conference, Inqilab Mancha leaders alleged that police had been uncooperative from the very beginning of the investigation. They said that in December 2024, Osman Hadi had filed a general diary (GD) with Shahbagh Police Station seeking personal security, which police initially denied. According to the organisation, police later acknowledged the GD only after evidence of its filing emerged.
Abdullah Al Jaber alleged that the charge sheet deliberately shielded those who masterminded the killing. “The charge sheet submitted by police protected the main planners behind the murder. Hadi was the number one witness in a case against Awami League leader Obaidul Quader. There is an attempt to portray this killing as an ‘isolated incident,’ which we will not accept,” he said.
The organisation said it welcomed the court’s order for reinvestigation but demanded that the probe be handed over to a neutral agency. Its leaders also called for the involvement of international bodies such as the FBI or Scotland Yard if necessary to ensure a credible investigation.
Sharif Osman Hadi was shot on 12 December at around 2:20 pm on Box Culvert Road under Paltan Model Police Station. According to police and family members, assailants on a motorcycle opened fire on him, leaving him critically injured with bullet wounds to the head and below his right ear.
He was first taken to Dhaka Medical College Hospital and later shifted to Evercare Hospital. As his condition worsened, he was flown to Singapore by air ambulance on 15 December for advanced treatment. He died there on 18 December while undergoing treatment.
Following the shooting, Abdullah Al Jaber filed an attempted murder case with Paltan Police Station on 14 December. After Hadi’s death, the case was converted into a murder case.
With the court now ordering a reinvestigation, Inqilab Mancha leaders say they will continue street programmes nationwide until what they describe as visible progress is made towards identifying and prosecuting those responsible.