Army giving full support in probe

Bangladesh Army has been extending full and sincere cooperation to the authorities probing the murder of Sohagi Jahan Tonu, the Inter Service Public Relations (ISPR) said yesterday.

In a press release, it said the patriotic Bangladesh Army, like the people, wants that the real killers are identified quickly and brought to book.

Tonu's family has made baseless and inconsistent allegations at different times, leaving room for tarnishing the image of Bangladesh Army, the ISPR said.

Like all the others living inside the cantonment, Tonu's family was given all sorts of privilege, and no obstruction was made in the movement of the family members. 

Following Tonu's murder, guards were deployed in the area where her family lives, and it was done for the sake of security and probe. Later, the guards were withdrawn as the situation improved.

For the sake of the cantonment's security, everyone is quizzed during entry and exit from the cantonment for confirming his or her identity. This military practice is not meant for demeaning anyone or curbing anybody's personal liberty, noted the ISPR.

Tonu's father Yaar Hossain is a staff member of the Comilla Cantonment Board, and like others, he is also given security inside the cantonment, it said.

The claim of attempts to kill him by crushing under a bus or a motorbike is a matter stemming from perception, and Tonu's family has not yet informed anyone about this, said the statement.

When a cantonment executive officer of the rank of a class-I government officer asked Tonu's father about it, he failed to give any reliable information, it said.

Tonu's father also didn't lodge any complaint with the army authorities or the investigators till date, which appears inconsistent given the seriousness of the matter, said the ISPR.

Like the other army families, Tonu's family is living inside the cantonment, and the army authorities are determined to provide all sorts of cooperation to the bereaved family, it added.

Tonu, a theatre activist and student of Comilla Victoria College, was found murdered in a bush in the Comilla Cantonment area on March 20.