Sagar-Runi Murder Transfer probe from Rab to a high-powered taskforce: HC

The High Court expressed grave concern over the Rapid Action Battalion’s failure to resolve the murder case of journalist couple Sagar Sarowar and Meherun Runi, which has remained unresolved for 12 years.

“The prolonged investigation delay is both unfortunate and shocking, affecting not only their family but the nation as a whole,” remarked the bench of Justice Farah Mahbub and Justice Muhammad Mahbub Ul Islam during a recent hearing.

In response to a petition, the court mandated the home ministry to transfer the case from Rab to a high-powered taskforce comprising experienced personnel from various agencies.

This task force is to complete the investigation and submit a report to the HC within six months.

The court set April 6, 2025, for further hearings on the matter. This directive followed a petition filed by the government on September 29, seeking to modify a previous HC order from April 18, 2012, which had assigned the case to RAB from the police’s detective branch.

Since then, Rab has failed to conclude the investigation, requesting extensions from the trial court 113 times.

During the hearing, Additional Attorney General Aneek R Haque informed the bench that Rab lacks the necessary experience and expertise to investigate criminal cases, as it functions primarily as an operational unit.

He suggested that the pressure from the “undemocratic” government led by Sheikh Hasina hindered RAB’s ability to conduct a thorough investigation.

The task force may include representatives from the Police Bureau of Investigation and the Criminal Investigation Department, said Mohammad Shishir Manir, the lawyer for the complainant in the case.

Sagar Sarowar, the news editor of private TV station Maasranga, and his wife, Meherun Runi, a senior reporter at ATN Bangla, were killed in their rented flat in West Rajabazar on February 11, 2012, while their five-year-old son, Mahir Sarowar Megh, was at home.

Runi’s brother, Nawsher Alam Roman, filed a murder case with the Sher-e-Bangla Nagar Police Station without naming any suspects. After initial investigations by police and detectives, RAB took over the case on April 18, 2012.

On September 9 this year, a Dhaka court instructed Rab to submit the probe report by October 15, marking yet another extension in a long line of delays. Previous court sessions have shown dissatisfaction with Rab’s handling of the investigation and its failure to identify the murder’s motive or apprehend the perpetrators.

Nawsher has voiced frustration over Rab’s investigative methods, saying they have subjected him and his nephew to mental distress.

He appealed to journalists for any documents that could help shed light on the case.