An elder sister and her nephew were hacked to death by her younger brother following a feud over land ownership in Muradnagar, Comilla.
The incident occurred around 7:30 PM on Monday (September 14) in Daranipara village of Babutipara Union under Muradnagar Upazila, Comilla. The two deceased have been identified as Khaleda Akhter (70), a retired government primary school headmaster and wife of Jasim Uddin of that village, and Manjurul Alam alias Titu (35), the son of her brother Bachchu Miah.
The accused has been identified as Mostafizur Rahman alias Abu. He is the youngest among the six sons and one daughter of the late Monu Miah.
According to police and local sources, an altercation broke out among family members over land property around 7:30 PM on the day of the incident. At one point, Mostafizur Rahman began hacking his elder sister Khaleda Akhter with a machete (da). As Khaleda Akhter collapsed to the ground from the blows, her nephew Manjurul Alam rushed to save her. Mostafizur then hacked him with the machete as well, leaving him critically injured.
Following the incident, local residents rescued the two critically injured victims and rushed them to Gouripur Health Complex, where the attending doctor declared them dead. Following an initial investigation, police stated that Mostafizur Rahman single-handedly hacked his sister and nephew to death. He has been absconding since the incident.
Local residents reported that during the land record process, Mostafizur Rahman allegedly had an excess portion of the family land recorded in his own name, bypassing equal distribution. A severe dispute had been ongoing among the family members over this issue for a long time, and a case regarding the matter is currently pending in court.
Arman Hossain, Chairman of Babutipara Union Parishad, stated that the family had been embroiled in a land dispute for a long time. The matter had been brought to their attention about three months ago, and initiatives were taken to reach a settlement. However, the dispute ultimately could not be resolved.
Local resident Abdul Matin said, “The dispute over land within the family was created because of Mostafizur Rahman. He did not abide by local community arbitrations either. Although locals attempted to resolve the matter several times while the case was pending in court, it was not possible. Mostafizur fled after killing his sister and nephew in the evening.”
Regarding the incident, Officer-in-Charge (OC) of Muradnagar Police Station, Md. Anwar Hossain, said, “Upon receiving the news, I inspected the scene. Primarily, it has been learned that Mostafizur single-handedly hacked his sister and nephew to death over a land dispute. He has absconded following the incident.”
The OC further added that police operations are underway to arrest the accused, Mostafizur. The bodies of the two deceased have been kept at the Gouripur Health Complex. The bodies will be sent to the morgue of Comilla Medical College Hospital for autopsy on Tuesday morning. As of 10:00 PM on Monday, no case had been filed with the police station regarding the incident.
