Pir’s body exhumed and reburied in Kushtia; counter-burial follows, case filed

A case has been filed after the body of Pir Shamim Jahangir, also known as Abdur Rahman, was exhumed from a graveyard in Daulatpur, Kushtia, and reburied at his darbar.

The pir’s elder brother, Fazlur Rahman Santu, filed the case with Daulatpur Police Station on Saturday night, naming unidentified individuals as accused, Officer-in-Charge Khaledur Rahman said.

“We are trying to arrest those involved,” he told Waadaa.

Khaledur said the body was reburied in its original grave at around 4pm on Saturday in the presence of police and administration officials.

Late Friday night, Shamim Jahangir’s body was exhumed from the Panchashat Bigha Cemetery in the South-West Philipnagar area and taken to his shrine, where it was reburied. The incident came to light the following morning, causing a stir in the area. 

After receiving the news on Saturday afternoon, police went to the site along with Daulatpur Upazila Assistant Commissioner (Land) Pradip Kumar Dash.

According to local residents, some of Shamim Jahangir’s followers had been trying to exhume his body and bury it at the shrine since his death. Police had therefore been deployed at the cemetery for several days after his burial.

Santu said they did not know who had exhumed the body or how it had been taken to the shrine during the night. They discovered what had happened after waking up in the morning and informed the police.

Assistant Commissioner (Land) Pradip Kumar Dash said they went to the site after receiving the report that the body had been exhumed and reburied at the shrine. He said the matter was being taken seriously.

On April 11 this year, Shamim Jahangir’s shrine was attacked by around 200 people following allegations of Quran desecration.

The attackers allegedly dragged the pir out of his room and beat him before striking him with sharp weapons. He was then thrown from the second floor. The shrine was subsequently vandalised and set on fire.

Shamim Jahangir, who sustained serious injuries in the attack, later died. Following an autopsy, his body was buried on April 12 at the Panchashat Bigha Cemetery in South-West Philipnagar.

Three days after the killing, on the night of April 13, Shamim’s elder brother Fazlur Rahman Santu filed a case with Daulatpur Police Station. The case named four individuals and accused another 180 to 200 unidentified people.

Meanwhile, Mohammad Abu Saeed, executive director of Maqam Center for Sufi Heritage, said police had arrested only a few people in connection with the earlier case.

“Police are responsible for ensuring public safety, not for deciding where a body should be buried,” he said.