“Everyone is saying my sister killed my nephew. My sister could not have done this, and her death was not natural either,” said Shahnewaz Amin Shuvo, brother of Kaniz Subarna Swarnali, wife of Jewel Hasan Saddam, president of the Bagerhat Sadar unit of the banned organisation Chhatra League, who is currently in Jashore Jail.
Calling for a more thorough investigation, he said, “She was killed, but I do not want to blame anyone yet. Their house has CCTV cameras that also record audio. The actual events will be revealed through those recordings.”
Earlier, on Friday (January 23) afternoon, the bodies of housewife Kaniz Subarna Swarnali and her nine-month-old son, Sejad Hasan Nazif, were recovered by police in Saberkhanga village of Bagerhat Sadar Upazila. On Saturday (January 24) at around 11:30 pm, they were buried in Swarnali’s father’s family graveyard in the same village.
Following the deaths of Saddam’s wife and child, his father-in-law, Ruhul Amin Howlader, initially said that his daughter may have committed suicide and that he had no complaints. However, on Saturday (January 24), he filed a murder case at Bagerhat Model Police Station against unidentified individuals. He said, “My daughter was found hanging. As for my grandson, we do not know how he died, which is why the murder case has been filed. The investigation will reveal the exact truth.”
The family also shared details of the incident with Saddam’s mother and younger brother, Engineer Shahidul Islam.
Saddam’s mother, Delwara Ekram, said, “I went to Bagerhat’s Boga Clinic area around 11:30 am on Friday to attend my niece’s wedding. At that time, my daughter-in-law, grandson, a daughter, and her son were at home. At noon, my daughter-in-law Swarnali was also supposed to go to that house. But at 1:45 p.m., I was informed by mobile phone from a neighbouring house that she had committed suicide. I rushed there immediately.”
She added, “I had a very peaceful family life; I lived at home with my daughter-in-law and grandson. I had a very good relationship with her. There was no shortage of anything in my household. But why she did this, I do not know.”
Saddam’s brother, Engineer Shahidul Islam, said, “There was no shortage or dispute in our household. We were unaware of any second marriage of my brother. Those spreading such news may have ulterior motives.”
He further stated that Swarnali had told him several times that her father had not come to see her or her son for two months. Others had also told her that her husband, Saddam, might never be released from jail. These issues had left her distressed.
Swarnali and Saddam married several years ago by mutual consent. Saddam has been in prison since before their child was born, having been arrested in Gopalganj on April 6 last year.
Saddam’s uncle, Hemayet Hossain, who applied for his parole release, said, “I had applied. The district administration informed us that Saddam is in Jashore Jail. Therefore, we had no opportunity to get him released on parole. Later, I met with the Superintendent of Bagerhat Jail. He said there was no chance. They told us to go to Jashore to meet him with the body. We then arranged the meeting in Jessore, but even there, they allowed only about 4–5 minutes.”
He added, “If the district administration and jail authorities had told us to apply in Jashore, we would have done so. But no one informed us that applying there could have allowed a parole release.”
Bagerhat Superintendent of Police Mohammad Hasan Chowdhury said, “The matter is under investigation. All suspicions will be clarified through proper inquiry.”
Regarding parole release, Bagerhat’s Deputy Commissioner Golam Md Baten said, “They had come with an application for parole. We explained the procedure. Since he is in Jashore Jail, they need to apply to the Deputy Commissioner or Jail Superintendent of Jashore. However, if parole is granted, it will only be effective within that district. Our administration had also informed Jessore Jail about the matter. We coordinated with the prison authorities to ensure they could see their deceased relative properly and respectfully. We assisted them in arranging the visit.”