'It's murder, not suicide'

Diaz Irfan Chowdhury, assistant secretary of Chhatra League central committee, whose body was found hanging in his house near Chittagong University on November 20 last year, was "strangled to death".

Humayun Kabir, investigation officer of the case, told this correspondent over phone, quoting Sohel Mahmud, head of forensic medicine department at Dhaka Medical College, who along with two other doctors conducted the second autopsy on Diaz's body.   

Diaz committed suicide, said the first postmortem report, prepared by Chittagong Medical College and submitted to police on November 23.

But Diaz's family had rejected the first autopsy report and demanded a fresh autopsy, claiming that Diaz had been murdered. 

“I did not get the [second] autopsy report yet, it will reach my office tomorrow evening," said Humayun, also senior assistant superintendent of police of the Criminal Investigation Department in Chittagong, yesterday. 

He added that he would be able to tell more after getting the report.

On December 6, a Chittagong court directed the district magistrate to exhume the body of Diaz for another autopsy. The order came following a petition filed by the CID seeking a fresh postmortem.

It had also ordered the DMC's Forensic Medicine Department head to form a three-member committee to conduct the autopsy on Diaz's body.

On December 10, the body of Diaz was exhumed for a fresh autopsy following the court order.

Sohel Mahmud, head of DMC's Forensic Medicine Department, performed the autopsy and told the media on December 11 that some bruises were found on Diaz's body.

Their report would be submitted with their opinion after getting viscera and other reports, he added.

After that, Sohel and his team members visited Diaz's house.

Diaz's mother Jaheda Amin Chowdhury filed a murder case with a Chittagong court against 20 people four days after his death.

Diaz was also a former joint secretary of Chittagong University unit BCL, a pro-Awami League student body. When Diaz's body was found hanging in his house near Gate-2 of the university, his family members were not at home.