Md. Shrabon Gazi

Md. Shrabon Gazi (20) was the only son of Md. Mannan Gazi and Shahnaz Begum, residents of Gerua area in Ashulia, near Jahangirnagar University. Shrabon was the elder of two siblings. Shrabon was studying software engineering at Tunku Abdul Rahman University of Management and Technology in Malaysia. He returned to the country on July 16th. Earlier, in 2022, Shrabon passed higher secondary from Savar Laboratory College's science department with a GPA of 4.58. Then, in February of this year, his family sent him to Malaysia for higher education. His younger sister, Mahima Elahi, is only 10 years old.
Description of the Incident
On August 5th, the day of the incident, Shrabon was at the forefront of the student-people's march that started from Jahangirnagar University as part of the 'March to Dhaka' program. When the march reached Savar from Jahangirnagar University, a bullet suddenly hit Shrabon's head, and he immediately fell to the ground. He was immediately taken to Gono Shasthya Samaj Medical College in Ashulia, where the doctor on duty declared him dead. Students participating in the march said that the march initially came down to the Dhaka-Aricha highway from the university campus through the main gate around 11:30 am to 12:00 pm that day. After waiting there for some time, it gradually moved forward.
Although the number of people in the march was small at first, the participation of students and people increased over time. After leaving the university, the march waited for a while in front of the university's main gate. Then, it stopped for short periods at various points, including in front of the MH Hall gate. During these breaks, a large number of students and people from various places and areas joined the march. When the march reached the New Market area of Savar, the number of participating students and people reached about 10/12 thousand, which was only 700 to 800 at the beginning. When the march reached the Savar bus stand area, a delegation of 7/8 teachers from the front row of the march went forward to talk to the police officers in front. The teachers wanted to move the march forward without any conflict, but after the teachers' delegation moved a short distance, the police started firing tear gas at them.
Although the teachers raised their hands and asked them not to shoot, the police did not listen. At one point, many people at the front of the march were scattered in the face of tear gas and rubber bullets fired by the police. According to Md. Biplob Hossain, a student of the 49th batch of the Department of Chemistry at Jahangirnagar University, "When the police started shooting, the police were quite far away from us. We retreated quite a bit towards Savar's New Market in the face of the shooting. At that time, no one from the police could be seen around. Suddenly, hearing a sound, it seemed like someone was shooting from somewhere nearby. I was then on the road opposite Swaranika Residential Area near Shimultala area, that is, on the lane towards Nabinnagar.
Suddenly, screams started from the opposite side that someone had been shot. I then moved forward. When I moved forward, I saw everyone bringing a boy holding him, he had been shot in the head, he was unconscious." He further said, "The time was then 2 o'clock or around that. I didn't know Shrabon then. Later, when an ambulance passing by that road was stopped and he was taken to the hospital in it, the doctors declared him dead. Later I learned that the boy's name was Shrabon Gazi, he used to study abroad." Shrabon's father, Mannan Gazi, said, "Around 12:30 pm, I saw Shrabon sitting on the island of the road in front of the dairy gate. He had a rod in his hand. I was then on the overbridge of the dairy gate. All the students were there then. I tried to keep an eye on Shrabon so that he wouldn't go far, he would stay here. His 30/40 friends were all there. At one point, although the procession moved towards Savar, Shrabon was still sitting there. Seeing him still, after some time, I went inside the dairy farm to pray. I thought he might not go. After I came, he probably didn't delay anymore, he went to the procession."
Funeral and Burial
After Shaheed Shrabon's martyrdom, Shrabon was buried in the local cemetery of the Central Cattle Breeding and Dairy Farm (Dairy Farm) area on the night of August 5th, the day of the incident.
Memories Related to Shaheed Shrabon
Shrabon's family is as distraught as they lost their only son, and at the same time, a shadow of mourning has descended on the area due to Shrabon's death. Recalling the memory of that morning, he said, "Around 9:30 am, after waking up from sleep, taking a bath, having breakfast, Shrabon was talking to the university teachers on email. After finishing the conversation, he took clothes from the hanger and put them on. I said, 'Son, you have so many clothes, wear something else.' Then he pulled the drawer of the wardrobe and put on a maroon-colored t-shirt. He said to me, 'Mom, where is the watch?' I said, 'It's in your drawer.'
Then, after putting the watch on his hand and putting on perfume, he said, 'Mom, I'm going to war.' He left the house around 10:40 am." "Before leaving the house, my son said to me, 'Mom, I'm going to war.' Hearing my son's words, I felt a kind of trembling in my body. Holding my son's hand, I said, 'Son, if I had two sons, I would have let you go. If one went, the other would have returned to my chest. I have only one son, what will I live with if I let you go, son? You are my only hope.' Seeing me holding his hand, my son looked at my face and said, 'No mom, I won't go anywhere, I'm in the canteen.'
The son who left saying these words returned as a corpse," Shaheed Shrabon Gazi's mother, Shahnaz Begum, recalled the last moments with her son in a tearful voice. Shrabon's father, Mannan Gazi, said, "Neither Shrabon nor any of us ever planned that Shrabon would get a government job after finishing his studies. After Shrabon passed higher secondary with good results while in the country, we sent Shrabon to Malaysia this year for studies at a cost of about 6 lakh taka by borrowing from relatives. Shrabon is my only son. The hope was that after studying software engineering, he would either get a good job abroad or do something good in the private sector after returning to the country." "After 2 pm, we were all waiting at the dairy farm club to hear the army chief's speech. The time of the army chief's speech was changed then. A boy named Tunu called me a while later. He called and asked me where I was. At one point, he informed me that Shrabon had been shot. Hearing about the shooting, my heart pounded. I asked where the bullet had hit. I thought, if it hit his hands or legs, it could be removed, but the boy started crying after hearing my question and said, 'Uncle, Shrabon was shot in the head.' I understood everything then," Shrabon's father, Mannan Gazi, said, breaking down in tears.
Shrabon's mother, Shahnaz Begum, said, "My last conversation with Shrabon on the day of the incident was on the phone around 1:30 pm. After finishing the prayers, I called Shrabon. I asked, 'Son, where are you?' He said, 'I'm at the dairy gate.' I said, 'Son, come home quickly from the gate.' After the prayers, we all sit together and eat rice. I was then serving rice for my son and feeding Mahima (daughter) rice. But my son didn't come, and he will never return to my chest." Shrabon Gazi's mother, Shahnaz Begum, recalled the last moments with her son in a tearful voice. May their son's great sacrifice be written somewhere in the victory story for which their son sacrificed his life. With this much consolation, they want to live the future time by clinging to the memory of their only son.
Family Condition
Shrabon's family was not financially well-off. Shrabon's father, Mannan Gazi, had been working in a garment factory for a long time. In 2016, he left the garment sector and joined the Central Cattle Breeding and Dairy Farm in Savar as a 'Breeding Assistant' on a master roll. Since then, they had been living in the residential quarters of the dairy farm.
Proposals
1. Arrange all expenses, including education, for the martyr’s younger sister.
2. Provide a one-time financial grant to the martyr's family.
Personal Information of the Shaheed at a Glance
Name : Md. Shrabon Gazi
Profession : Student
Institution : Tunku Abdul Rahman University of Management and Technology, Malaysia
Subject : Software Engineering
Current Address : House: Dairy Farm Residential Quarters, Area: Savar, District: Dhaka
Father's Name : Md. Mannan Gazi,
Father's Profession : Breeding Assistant
Working Institution : Central Cattle Breeding and Dairy Farm, Savar
Designation : Master
Mother's Name : Shahnaz Begum
Mother's Profession : Housewife
Sister : 1, Mahima Elahi, Age: 10 years
Place of Incident : Savar
Attacker : Police
Time of Injury : August 5, 2024
Type of Injury : Gunshot wound to the head
Date, Time
and Place of Death : August 5, 2024, Savar, during the march from Jahangirnagar University gate.