News Flash
By Md Mamun Islam
RANGPUR, July 15, 2025 (BSS) - Family members, relatives, fellow fighters and friends have recalled memories with Abu Sayeed who embraced martyrdom on July 16, 2024 during the Anti-discrimination Student Movement.
They demanded swift trial of the Abu Sayeed murder case and all cases related to the July uprising within the tenure of the interim government.
They, however, expressed their faith in the interim government and the International Crimes Tribunal (ICT).
Abu Sayeed's first martyrdom anniversary will be observed tomorrow with due solemnity and dignity.
Born in a poor family in Babanpur village of Pirganj upazila of Rangpur, Abu Sayeed was the youngest of six brothers and had three sisters.
They said Abu Sayeed's loss deserted the family.
On July 16, 2024, Abu Sayeed, one of the student coordinators at Begum Rokeya University, Rangpur (BRUR), was killed in police firing in front of the university's Gate No 1.
His martyrdom outraged protesters and turned the quota reform movement into anti-government movement. Despite ruthless crackdown, then Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina could not save her empire and fled the country on August 5.
Abu Sayeed's father Md Mokbul Hossain said, "My beloved son Abu Sayeed was a beacon of hope for the entire family and relatives."
It's been a year since Abu Sayeed's martyrdom. But it feels like yesterday. My son Abu Sayeed's death shattered our dreams, his father Mokbul Hossain told BSS recently.
He hoped trial of the murder case at the ICT will be completed soon.
I want to see the killers of my son and all July martyrs are punished, he said.
Standing next to Abu Sayeed's grave, his mother Monwara Begum said the loss is unbearable and the family will find some relief once the trial of the murder case is completed.
Abu Sayeed's elder brother Abu Hossain thanked the interim government for its commitment to complete the trials within its tenure.
Another brother Ramzan Ali said, "My brother Abu Sayeed is lying in eternal rest in the courtyard of our house. I can't control tears whenever I look at his grave."
Sayeed's younger sister, Sumi Khatun, recalled the simplicity of their life before the tragedy.
"We had very little, but we were happy sharing everything with our brother. Now we have more, but no happiness. I want nothing but the capital punishment for the killers."
Md Rahamat Ali, a CSE student and former coordinator at BRUR, said that the ICT had framed charges and begun the trial. "We want the verdict soon. Let this be a landmark in our judiciary, showing that no one is above justice."
Shamsur Rahman Suman, a Bengali department student and Sayeed's fellow coordinator, expressed hope that the interim government would fulfill its promise.
"Completing the July massacre trials will be a national milestone," he said.
Tawhidul Haque Siam, a fourth-year BBA student who was seriously injured while trying to save Sayeed, still carries about 60 splinters in his body, including six in his head.
"Sayeed always stood against injustice and discrimination," he said.
BRUR Vice-Chancellor Prof. Dr. Md Showkat Ali remembered Abu Sayeed as a proud member of the university community.
"His supreme sacrifice brought national and international recognition to BRUR. Justice in his case will bring peace to the families of all July martyrs and to the nation as a whole," he said.
