Md. Sohel

Md. Sohel was a resident of the Badda area in Dhaka city. He was born on 19 October 1999. He was a first-year undergraduate student at the Bangladesh Open University.
His father's name is Jahangir Alam, who worked as a driver. His mother, Rahima Begum, is a homemaker. He had one sister, Nupur Akter, who is a student at Titumir College.
Background of the Martyrdom
Following the ascension of an autocratic government to power in 2008, the regime began systematically suppressing all opposition parties with the support of India. The government orchestrated a massacre in Pilkhana, using Indian forces, in which 76 military officers and several civilians were killed. From among the revolutionary officers who had previously resisted the corrupt and autocratic regime of Sheikh Mujib and his brutal paramilitary force, five were executed by hanging.
The main opposition party, BNP, was gradually rendered inactive through legal harassment, intimidation, and financial manipulation. Begum Khaleda Zia was imprisoned, and her eldest son was severely beaten, forcing him into exile. The Awami League and its patron India identified Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami and its student wing, Islami Chhatra Shibir, as the primary obstacles to exploiting the nation’s resources.
As a result, from 2001 onwards, the Indian-funded newspaper Prothom Alo began publishing a series of fabricated and propagandist articles about Jamaat leaders, including distorted cartoons and sensational headlines alleging what each leader had supposedly done during 1971. The intent was to vilify Jamaat and tarnish the image of Islam and Islamic values in the public eye.
From 2009, an era of ruthless oppression commenced against Jamaat-e-Islami. Its leaders and activists endured imprisonment, abduction, extrajudicial killings, crossfire executions, torture, rape, and public hangings under false accusations of war crimes. Five top Jamaat leaders were executed one after another on fabricated charges. They were offered the opportunity to seek clemency, but Sheikh Hasina made it conditional upon an appeal for mercy. The Jamaat leaders, however, chose martyrdom over submission to tyranny.
After coming to power in 2008 with the support of Army Chief Moeen U Ahmed, certain intoxicated and morally bankrupt Awami League advisors falsely assured the people that giving India access to resources and privileges would elevate Bangladesh beyond Canada and Singapore within four years. Instead, within five years, people began losing their personal and national wealth, realizing that the country had been taken hostage by predators.
Understanding that it could not win a free and fair election, the Awami League orchestrated a fraudulent "midnight election" in 2014. Voters arrived at polling centers only to discover their votes had already been cast. Those who protested were met with imprisonment, disappearance, or murder, leading to mass self-imposed exile.
The religious community began to realize that anti-Islamic actions were cornering Islam and Muslims across the nation. Immoral and atheistic individuals were appointed to significant positions. In response to state-sponsored blasphemy against the Prophet Muhammad (PBUH), the Hefazat-e-Islam movement emerged to protect Islamic values. In 2014, Jamaat-e-Islami and Islami Chhatra Shibir supported Hefazat’s anti-government movement. Hefazat activists gathered at Shapla Chattar in Dhaka, demanding justice against blasphemous writers. Sheikh Hasina, rejecting these demands, ordered a massacre. Dozens were killed overnight in police firing. For reporting on the incident, Diganta TV and Islamic TV were shut down. Numerous other media outlets faced similar fates. Many editors and journalists began praising the regime, becoming allies in the campaign to eliminate Islam and its proponents.
In 2018, Sheikh Hasina returned to power through yet another rigged election — a pattern repeated again in 2024. The general populace and students longed for change. When a student movement against inequality erupted, Sheikh Hasina responded with brutal suppression. From the outset, students were killed in the streets, prompting national outrage.
Martyr Md. Sohel was a conscientious student. He realized that under the prevailing system, it was nearly impossible to secure employment without influence. Deeply angered by the killing of students at a rally against the quota system, he took to the streets on 19 July to stand by fellow students. He was located in the Link Road Gudara Ghat area. At approximately 3:30 PM, police fired at him, and bullets pierced through both his legs.
His friends carried him to a local medical facility in Badda for initial treatment. He was then referred to the National Institute of Traumatology and Orthopaedic Rehabilitation (Pangu Hospital). Despite being taken to the emergency unit around 5:00 PM, he had to wait five hours before being moved to the operating theater at 10:00 PM. By then, he had suffered severe blood loss. Initially, he was admitted to general bed no. 27. On 20 July, his condition deteriorated, and he was transferred to ICU Unit 08. There, he battled for his life for seven days and ultimately passed away on Friday, 26 July at 2:00 PM while on life support.
According to Dr. Harun-ur-Rashid of the ICU unit at Pangu Hospital, Sohel’s internal organs were critically damaged due to bullet wounds and toxic infections, and trauma-induced brain swelling had caused fluid accumulation. He also suffered massive blood loss.
Statement from the Family
Sister's Reflections:
“My brother always took care of me. As I suffer from physical weakness, he never allowed me to take tutoring jobs. He would sit by my side when I studied late at night, staying with me even into the early hours. He loved my cooking and would often say, ‘Nupu, please cook today.’ He called me ‘Nupu’ affectionately. It’s been six months, and I can no longer hear his voice calling me. Before leaving the house, he would ask me, ‘How do I look?’ and when I told him he looked good, he would be overjoyed.”
Financial Situation:
The father is ill and unable to work. The sister, Nupur, studies and also holds a small job. The family has no assets and lives in a rented house in Dhaka.
Summary of Information Regarding the Martyred Individual
Name: Md. Sohel
Profession: Student
Father’s Name: Jahangir Alam
Mother’s Name: Rahima Begum
Family Information
Permanent and Present Address: 405, Bagan Bari, Gulshan, Ward 38, Dhaka
Place of Incident: Link Road, Gudaraghat
Assailant: Police
Time of Injury: 19 July, 3:30 PM
Nature of Injury: Gunshot wounds to both legs
Date, Time, and Place of Death: 26 July 2024, Pongu Hospital, 2:00 PM
Recommendations
1. Arrangement for monthly and one-time financial assistance
2. Educational support for the younger brother