Md. Ashraful Islam Antor

Ashraful Islam Antor is the only son of Mr. Mizanur Rahman and Mrs. Hamida Banu. He was born on May 12, 2009, in the village of Korla, under Biral police station in Dinajpur district. Antor's childhood was spent there. His father repairs various electrical equipment in the local market. However, Ashraful's mother suddenly faced a crisis with her son. It was as if all dreams turned into nightmares for her in an instant. Mizanur remarried without informing her. Mental torture befell the innocent child. Unable to bear the inhuman torture, Hamida Banu eventually moved to her sister's house in Jatrabari, Dogair Notun Para area of Dhaka with her son. A new life began there for Antor and his mother. She took a low-paying job at a garment factory in New Market in the capital. She would bring the snacks she received from the factory for her son instead of eating them herself, fulfilling her maternal duties.
According to Hamida Banu - 'Forty Taka bus fare was required daily for going to and from the Kamrangirchar factory from Dogair. I have walked miles carrying a nursing child on my chest. I bought food for my son instead of eating myself. Antor's father never once inquired about his son. When my son grew up a little, I admitted him to school. I taught him to read and write. I dreamt that one day my son would grow up to be very successful. Antor would make lights and fans for me. I thought my son would become a great engineer one day. The responsibility that his father had, I fulfilled that responsibility. His father never once inquired about his own child. After learning that my son had been martyred, I called Antor's father and informed him. Even then, his father was angry with me. I just want - may Allah grant my child paradise."
After separating from Mr. Mizanur Rahman, Hamida Banu lived alone with her son for ten long years. Although marriage proposals came, she did not marry elsewhere for the sake of her son. Two years before Antor's martyrdom, his parents forcibly married their daughter to a man from Banial, Ashalirchar village in Munshiganj district. Antor got his family back again. After some time, Hamida Banu gave birth to a beautiful baby girl, Faria (1). She tasted motherhood again. Currently, Hamida Banu, the mother who gave birth to Shaheed Ashraful Islam Antor, has freed herself from factory work and is once again focusing on rebuilding her family.
Antor's stepfather currently lives in Malaysia. He went abroad a year ago with the money from selling his wife's jewelry. He used to run a fast-food business in the country. After going on a tourist visa, the company has not yet given him a working visa. As a result, he is working somewhat covertly. He earns only twenty thousand Taka in salary. Due to which it is becoming difficult for him to bear all the expenses of the family. They have no cultivable land except for the ancestral house in the village.
Creativity of the Martyr
Before his martyrdom, Ashraful Islam Antor was studying in the seventh grade at Siddiq-e-Akbar (RA) Institute in Dogair Bazar, Basherpool Road, Sarulia, Demra, Dhaka. Anyone would be impressed by Antor's creativity. His technical knowledge was very good. He would fix various electronic devices himself when they broke down. He would make small lights and fans and give them to his mother as gifts. If there was any electrical problem at home, he would solve it himself. He would repeatedly tell his mother - Mom, one day I will make a robot. My robot will do all your household chores.
From skipping school to the path of movement
Antor is late in returning home from school every day. One day, his mother got very angry and scolded him. He went to sleep without eating in his school uniform, feeling sad. Hamida Banu woke him up. She lovingly said to her son - You are my only son, how will I survive if something happens to you, (baba - son)? Antor looked at his mother and said - 'Mom, I will definitely go to the movement, you will not stop me.'
The context of the victory procession and martyrdom
On August 5, 2024, the people of the entire country burst into cheers at the resignation of Sheikh Hasina. Victory processions were taken out from all the alleys and streets of the country, including the capital. Similarly, a victory procession was taken out by the local people adjacent to Jatrabari. Antor participated in the procession, evading his mother's eyes. Even after the victory, Hasina's pet forces did not know how to stop. The killer police force continued to fire indiscriminately all around. The streets of Jatrabari were stained with the blood of hundreds of corpses. Suddenly at 5.00 pm, Ashraful Islam Antor was shot. The killer's bullet pierced his chest and crossed his back. He immediately fell to the ground. According to locals, the police force first 'pressed Antor down with their feet. Then they shot him in the chest and legs. After ensuring his death, the killer police force, the henchmen of the hated autocrat, kicked the martyr's body away again.
The body was found at DMCH
Unable to find the body, his mother posted on social media. Then, after seeing the advertisement, a person called and informed - 'Your son's body has been found outside the emergency department of Dhaka Medical College. Please come quickly.' The martyr's mother went crazy. Then the martyr Antor's mother and aunt received the body. Hamida Banu fainted the moment she saw her son's injured body.
Shaheed’s Personal Life at a Glance
Name: Md. Ashraful Islam Antor
Occupation: Student
Date of Birth and Age: May 12, 2009, and (15)
Date of Injury and Martyrdom: August 5, 2024, Afternoon: 05:10
Place of Martyrdom: Jatrabari
Buried at: Jatrabari Dogair Graveyard
Grave's GPS Location: 23°42’36.4"N 90°28’31.6"E’23.710098,90.475451
Permanent Address: Village: Banial, Ashalir Char Upazila: Munshiganj Sadar, District: Munshiganj
Father and Mother: Mizanur Rahman, Hamida Banu (divorced, the martyr's mother fulfilled all responsibilities)
Condition of House and Property: There is a tin-made ancestral house, no arable land
Details of Siblings: Only sister: Faria, Age: 1 year, (lives with mother)
Proposals
1. The martyr's mother can be given monthly assistance.
2. Arrangements can be made for loan repayment.
3. The martyr's only sister can be brought under orphan care.