Cop shot dead by another cop in Dhaka's Gulshan diplomatic area
Pulling a single trigger, the police constable fired 30 rounds of bullets, said an official of the diplomatic security division
Police have cordoned off the capital's Gulshan diplomatic area after a policeman was shot dead by another policeman on Saturday (8 June) night.
A constable named Md Monirul, 27, was shot dead by another constable named Kawsar Ali, 41, in the Gulshan diplomatic area around 11:45pm, according to police.
Monirul, son of Shamsul Haq, is from Netrokona's Atpara upazila. He joined the police as a constable in 2018 and is survived by his wife and a 17-month-old child.
An unidentified cyclist and a driver of the Japanese Embassy named Sazzad Hossain were also injured in the incident. They were taken to a nearby hospital for treatment.
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"Kawsar was later disarmed and taken to the Gulshan Police Station. Police also recovered 20 rounds of bullet casings and some more bullet shells from the spot," Inspector General of Police (IGP) Chowdhury Abdullah Al-Mamun said after visiting the spot.
Gulshan Police Station Officer-in-Charge Mazharul Islam told The Business Standard that both policemen were on security duty during the incident.
"One of our constables, who was mentally stressed, shot another constable," he added.
Hasan Ahmed, a newsroom editor of satellite television Ekattor TV who was passing by the spot, told TBS that he saw a policeman in uniform fall on the footpath, and his back was blood-soaked.
"As we were going through the road of Baridhara roundabout, we saw a policeman's body on the road. We stopped and asked the other policeman. He shouted at us and threatened us to leave the road and we did so," he said.
Meanwhile, police deployed a SWAT team in the Baridhara diplomatic zone.
According to sources, during an altercation while on duty, Kawsar fired several rounds of bullets and killed Monirul.
"Pulling a single trigger, the constable [Kawsar] fired around 30 rounds of bullets," said an official of the diplomatic security division.
The official said the constable was mentally stressed and acting differently for the last couple of weeks.
Investigation is underway: IGP
The Inspector General of Police (IGP), Chowdhury Abdullah Al-Mamun, said the police are investigating why Kawsar Ali shot Monirul Islam.
"The attacking constable has been disarmed and taken to custody. We are interrogating him. Monirul Islam's body has been sent to Shaheed Suhrawardy Medical College and Hospital for autopsy. We have recovered some bullet casings and twenty rounds of ammunition from the scene," he said after visiting the scene around 2:30am Sunday (9 June).
"We are investigating this incident. Legal actions will be taken if necessary."
He said Kawsar was apprehended after the incident as he was walking around near the scene with his weapon set aside.
The police IGP said Sazzad Hossain, the driver of the Japanese Embassy who was injured during the shooting, is currently undergoing treatment at the United Hospital.
Three bullets hit Sazzad Hossain.
When asked about the primary reason for the shooting, the police IGP said, "We will interrogate Constable Kawsar to understand the reasons behind the incident. Based on the information obtained from the interrogation, we will take action."
"Since we already detained the attacker, it will not be difficult to uncover the true story behind the incident," he added.
Asked how such an incident took place in a highly secured diplomatic area, he said, "We had our people at the spot, and the incident was also caused by one of our own. We are trying to find out why it happened."
Addressing concerns about the long duty hours in the diplomatic area, where a constable has to work 16 hours a day, and whether such duties could lead to mental distress, Chowdhury Abdullah Al-Mamun stated that the police would investigate these aspects.
