<i>'Dead man' tells court he is alive</i>

6 April 2009, 18:00 PM

Staff Correspondent, Khulna

A 'dead man' whose body was recovered by police on January 16 and identified by his father reappeared on Thursday to tell the court of Chief Judicial Magistrate that he is still alive. The magistrate immediately sent Rubel Sarder, son of Rustam Sarder, to district jail. Rustam, who identified the body of his son Rubel Sarder and later buried it at his native village Alipur under Rampal upazila of Bagerhat, has now absconded to evade arrest. Police said Rustam, after identifying the body recovered from Bagerhat-Mawa highway in Fakirhat upazila, filed FIR with Fakirhat police station accusing prominent fish trader Sheikh Ekramul Kabir of murder. Accordingly, police arrested Ekramul who is still languishing in Bagerhat jail. Meanwhile, Taslima Begum, eldest sister of Ekramul demanded immediate arrest of Rustam Sardar for implicating her brother in a false murder case. She made the demand at a press conference at Bagerhat Press Club on Saturday afternoon. Taslima Begum said Rubel was an employee of the fishing trawler owned by her brother. On December 31 last, Rubel went into hiding after misappropriating Tk 2,96,000 from the trawler, she alleged in her press statement. She said Rustam had filed a GD with Fakirhat police station saying his son is missing. Later, he filed a murder case after identifying a body as his son's on January 16.