Journalist Sagar-Runi murder: Probe report submission delayed for 111th time

The submission of the investigation report in the murder case of journalists Sagar Sarowar and Meherun Runi has been delayed for the 111th time. 

Despite being scheduled for Monday, the investigating agency, RAB, failed to submit the report again. Consequently, Dhaka Metropolitan Magistrate Mahbubul Haque’s court has now set a new deadline of October 15 for the submission.

Sagar Sarowar, the news editor of Maasranga Television, and his wife, Meherun Runi, a senior reporter at ATN Bangla, were brutally murdered in their rented Dhaka home on February 11, 2012. Following the tragedy, Runi‍‍`s brother, Naosher Alam Roman, filed a murder case with Sher-e-Bangla Nagar police station.

Initially, the investigation was led by a sub-inspector from the police station, but due to the high-profile nature of the case, it was transferred to the Detective Branch (DB) of the Dhaka Metropolitan Police four days later. However, after more than two months, the DB investigation failed to make significant progress.

On April 18, 2012, following a directive from the High Court, the case was handed over to the Rapid Action Battalion (RAB) for further investigation. Despite numerous extensions since then, the investigation remains incomplete.

Eight individuals have been accused in the case, including Runi‍‍`s friend Tanvir Rahman. The other accused are the building’s security guard Enam Ahmed alias Humayun Kabir, Rafiqul Islam, Bakul Mia, Masum Mintu, Kamrul Hasan Aru, Palash Rudra Pal, and Abu Sayeed.