GUWAHATI: Meghalaya Police dismissed media reports in Bangladesh that two suspected killers of student leader Sharif Osman Hadi fled to the northeastern state.
Police also rejected claims that two persons, who helped the fugitives, have been arrested here.
Quoting a senior official in the country, the Daily Star reported that suspects, Faisal Karim Masud and Alamgir Sheikh, had crossed over into Meghalaya with the help of local associates.
“According to our information, the suspects entered India via the Haluaghat border. After crossing, they were initially received by an individual named Purti. Later, a taxi driver named Sami transported them to Tura city in Meghalaya,” the newspaper quoted Additional Commissioner SN Nazrul Islam.
The report further stated that Purti and Sami had been detained by authorities in India. Some other media houses also reported that the duo had been arrested.
However, Meghalaya Director General of Police Idashisha Nongrang said, “No arrests have been made.”
Another senior police official said Meghalaya Police had not received any formal or informal communication from Bangladesh Police or other Bangladesh authorities in this regard.
The BSF also dismissed the reports. “We learnt about the news circulating in the media and on social media handles. We verified at our end. This is completely false,” a senior BSF official told TNIE.
He further stated that the demography along the Meghalaya-Bangladesh border is such that an outsider is easily identifiable.
“There have been many instances where the villagers identified such persons and helped the BSF,” the official further stated.
Hadi (32) was shot in the Paltan area of Dhaka by two motorcycle-borne assailants on December 12. On December 15, he was airlifted to Singapore for treatment but he succumbed to his injuries three days later.
His death had triggered nationwide violent protests, during which media houses, political and cultural sites, and diplomatic missions were targeted.