Hadi murder: Bangladeshi broker Philip Sangma sent to 14-day custody in Kolkata

A Kolkata court on Saturday sent Bangladeshi broker Philip Sangma to 14 days of judicial custody in connection with the murder of Bangladeshi activist Sharif Osman Hadi.

During this period, the West Bengal Police Special Task Force (STF) will conduct detailed interrogations. Sangma is scheduled to return to court on April 3 for further proceedings.

Before being presented in court, Sangma underwent a medical examination at Bidhannagar Hospital to ensure he was fit for custody. Following the check-up, he was held in the lockup of the Electronic Complex police station and later transferred to Dumdum Central Jail. He was not presented directly before the judge during Saturday’s hearing.

The judicial custody is intended to allow the STF sufficient time to question Sangma regarding his alleged role in facilitating the escape of other accused involved in the case.

Authorities allege that Sangma aided Faisal Karim Masud and Alamgir Hossain, the main accused in Hadi’s murder, in fleeing to India.

According to law enforcement sources, Sangma helped the two men cross from Haluaghat in Mymensingh, Bangladesh, into the Indian state of Meghalaya, circumventing border security measures.

Sangma was arrested on March 13 near the Shantipur Bypass area in Nadia district, West Bengal, based on intelligence inputs. He was initially placed under a seven-day police remand, which expired before his current custody hearing.

Earlier in March, Faisal and Alamgir were apprehended by the STF near Bongaon in North 24 Parganas district, close to the Bangladesh border. A local court granted them 14 days of police remand on March 8. Both had illegally crossed into Meghalaya and were reportedly planning to return to Bangladesh via Bongaon, according to police reports.

Osman Hadi, a prominent figure of the July Mass Uprising 2024, was shot in the head on December 12 last year while travelling on a rickshaw on Box Culvert Road in Dhaka's Bijaynagar area.

Later, he was airlifted to Singapore for advanced treatment, where he succumbed to his injuries on the night of December 18.

On December 20, he was laid to rest beside the grave of National Poet Kazi Nazrul Islam at Dhaka University.

DD/MHK