Family members of Mosarat Jahan Munia, a college student found hanged in her Gulshan flat on April 26, 2021, called for a reinvestigation of her rape and murder case on Tuesday.
The family also demanded exemplary punishment for the main accused, Bashundhara Group managing director Sayem Sobhan Anvir, and others allegedly involved in the case.
They made the demands at a press conference at Abdus Salam Hall of the National Press Club at about 11:30am.
Munia鈥檚 sister Nusrat Jahan Tania, who filed the case against Anvir and others, alleged that the Bashundhara Group attempted to exert influence to suppress the case.
鈥楩rom the moment of filing the case, land grabber Basundhara Group tried to buy the entire state machinery to cover up the incident,鈥� she said.
She accused several law enforcement officials, including former inspector general of police Benazir Ahmed, of playing a 鈥榮hameless role鈥� in saving Anvir.
Tania also claimed that Anvir offered her Tk 100 crore to compromise and lift the case.
M Sarwar Hossain, the lawyer representing Munia鈥檚 family, said that taking the case to the High Court was under process.
He said that the state, the investigators, and the court system failed to ensure justice for Munia.
Munia鈥檚 sister Nusrat also said that she was not able to meet former prime minister Sheikh Hasina, despite submitting a 26-page letter to seek her attention.
鈥業 believe that people like Anvir wouldn鈥檛 have dared to commit such shameless acts if Hasina had not sheltered him,鈥� she said.
She said that although other accused of the case were arrested, Anvir was never detained or questioned.
鈥楳y sister might have made some mistakes but the injustice was done to her must be addressed,鈥� Tania said.
She urged the interim government formed after Hasina resigned amid student-led mass uprising and fled to India on August 5 to ensure justice for her sister and exemplary punishment for Anvir and others responsible.
On April 26, 2021, the police found 21-year-old Munia鈥檚 body hanging from a ceiling fan in her Gulshan flat.
Nusrat filed a case on the same night accusing Anvir of abetment of suicide.
The police found no involvement of Anvir in the death and submitted the final report to the court on July 19, 2021, giving a clean chit to the key accused.
On September 6, 2022, Nusrat filed another case with the Dhaka Women and Children Repression Prevention Tribunal-8 on the charges of rape and murder of Munia.
Bashundhara Group managing director Sayem Sobhan Anvir and his father and the group chair, Ahmed Akbar Sobhan, are among the eight accused in the murder case.
However, the Police Bureau of Investigation submitted the final report in the case on October 19, 2023, clearing the accused of the charges.
