Play store
Freedom fighter Manik Pashari was buried in his family graveyard in Chitalia village of Pirojpur Sadar upazila early Sunday, nearly 17 hours after his death, following objections and tensions over his burial.
He was laid to rest after 2am on Sunday in the village under Shankarpasha Union.
Family members alleged that after they initially dug a grave, local leaders and activists of Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami filled it in.
Later at night, Pashari’s daughter and two sisters dug the grave again with the assistance of village police, using mobile phone lights, and arranged his burial.
Pashari was the complainant in a crimes against humanity case against Delawar Hossain Sayedee, a former nayeb-e-ameer of Jamaat-e-Islami.
His daughter, Sumi Begum, said the family began digging a grave in their family cemetery after learning of his death on Saturday afternoon. However, several people later arrived and filled in the grave, saying he would not be allowed to be buried there.
The family subsequently arranged the burial at night and dug the grave themselves. Relatives and several village police members were present, but, according to Sumi, no local residents joined the burial.
Freedom fighter Abdul Baten said Pashari was included on the list of freedom fighters after testifying against Sayedee. Baten claimed that Pashari had given the testimony under pressure from the then government.
He said obstructing Pashari’s burial was wrong and that he should have been laid to rest in his birthplace.
Meanwhile, Pirojpur district Jamaat-e-Islami assistant secretary Abdur Razzaq alleged that Pashari had given false testimony against their leader Sayedee. He said local people had opposed the burial but denied that Jamaat had obstructed it.
Family members and local sources said Pashari had been suffering from illness for a long time and was staying at his daughter’s home. He died around 10am on Saturday in Tungipara, Gopalganj.
While relatives were taking his body to his home in Chitalia village for burial, they faced resistance in Pirojpur town. Several local people, Jamaat activists and followers of Sayedee reportedly obstructed them.
Police later took Pashari’s body to the Pirojpur Police Lines, where followers of Sayedee and local Jamaat activists staged protests. A guard of honour was given to him under police protection in the afternoon.
Pirojpur Sadar Police Station Officer-in-Charge Shariful Islam confirmed that Pashari was buried in Chitalia village at night.
On August 12, 2009, Pashari filed a case at the Pirojpur Chief Judicial Magistrate Court against five people, including Sayedee, over murder, arson and looting during the 1971 Liberation War.
He was the sixth prosecution witness in the case before the International Crimes Tribunal.