Ripon Chandra Shil

Ripon Chandra Shil came into this world on November 14, 1998, to father Ratan Chandra Shil and mother Rubina Rani Shil. From his childhood, he was known as an extremely polite, gentle, and smart boy in the area. He had good relations with relatives and neighbors. Due to the family's weak economic condition, he also took over the responsibility/charge of the family with his father. He used to work as a barber in a salon in Habiganj town.
How He Became a Shaheed
Ripon, aged 25, had grown up witnessing the Awami League and its fascist rule. Suppression and torture of dissidents, killing people in broad daylight through tagging, step-motherly treatment towards opposition parties and opinions, arbitrary use of power, superficial glitter and internally hollow economic conditions, submissive foreign policy, killing people at the border, and above all, the overall plight of the country troubled Ripon as a politically conscious person. He was a member of the Jatiotabadi Chhatra Dal, Anantapur, Ward 9, under Habiganj Municipality.
When the anti-quota just movement of ordinary students turned into an anti-discrimination mass movement due to the government's continuous negligence and repressive policies, Ripon, as a conscious citizen, joined the movement. The use of batons on peaceful protesters, tear gas on college and university students, sound grenades, pellet guns, and above all, the violent suppression of the peaceful mass movement, was highly provocative. The government's internet shutdown, nationwide curfew, and nighttime area-based blackouts, along with house-to-house searches and mass arrests, exceeded the people's limit of tolerance. As a result, the common people, who were fed up with the misrule of the past 15 years, defied the fascist government's threats and took to the streets. They joined the movement of college and university students. The student movement gradually turned into a mass movement.
But the massive public support for the movement could not bring about a change of heart in the government. The power-hungry and plunderous government used its full force to suppress the movement. There was no crime that the killer Hasina government and its cohorts did not commit, even from stealing corpses from hospital morgues to burning them in mass graves, and using helicopters to kill the Bangladeshi citizens. But at one point, when they realized that their time was up and that the people of Bengal would no longer tolerate them, they were ready to deliver a death blow. They began to indiscriminately kill the general masses. But even then, they could not suppress the people.
On August 4, 2014, Ripon Chandra Shil joined the procession of the anti-discrimination student movement. A nationwide curfew was in force that day as well. When the students' procession reached in front of the Town Hall, Ripon Chandra Shil was caught by local Awami League members during a chase and counter-chase between students and the police. The terrorists shot him directly in the chest. The bullet pierced his right rib cage and directly hit his lungs. Ripon fell to the ground writhing in pain. Fresh blood gushed out of his chest. The dry soil was soaked in the hero's red blood. Due to excessive bleeding, Ripon Chandra Shil gradually became lifeless. The lamp of his life was extinguished. He departed to the afterlife, leaving behind his parents, wife, and family, including his only son, Abir Biswas Shil, who was only four months old.
Sister's Feelings about the Shaheed
Rubina Rani Shil, the elder sister of Ripon Chandra Shil, said, "Ripon was an extremely good boy. He was polite, gentle, and smart. He would go from home to the shop and then come back home after the shop closed. He never hung out anywhere inappropriately. Ripon Chandra Shil did not use bidis, cigarettes, or any other form of smoking. He had good relations with relatives and neighbors. He was a simple and honest man. He used to run his own family with what he earned and also gave money to his parents."
His childhood friend Ashraful Nishad expressed grief on social media and wrote, "May you be well on the other side."
Family's Financial Condition
Ripon Chandra Shil's family's financial condition is not good. He worked as a barber in someone else's salon, and the money he earned was barely enough to run their household. He lived in a rented house in Habiganj town with his wife, son, and other family members. At the time of his death, he left behind a four-month-old son. He could not leave anything for his wife and child. His father's homestead was sold five years ago to arrange his elder sister's marriage.
Ripon Chandra Shil was a beloved child to everyone in his family. Losing him has cast a shadow of grief over his family.
Personal Information of the victim at a Glance
Name : Ripon Chandra Shil
Date of Birth: 14-11-1998
Father : Ratan Chandra Shil
Mother : Rubina Rani Shil
Permanent Address : Village: Anantapur, Union: 9 No. Machulia,
: Thana: Habiganj Sadar, District: Habiganj
Marital Status : Married
Child : Abir Biswas Shil (Age: 4 months)
Occupation : Barber
Place of Incident : In front of Habiganj Town Hall
Time of Injury : 4-08-2024, 3 PM
Time of killing : 4-08-2024, 3 PM
Type of Injury : Bullet wound in the right chest
Attacker : Awami League
Proposal
1. It would be good if someone could take responsibility for his four-month-old orphaned son.
Arrangements could be made to expand capital to facilitate a small business