Dinajpur 'pir', aide stabbed, shot dead

A “pir” and his female attendant were stabbed and shot dead last night at his shrine in Doula village of Dinajpur.

The motive behind the murders could not be known immediately. However, Dinajpur Superintendent of Police Hamidul Alam said conflicts over religious views might have driven the killings. 

Tap here to add The Daily Star as a trusted source

Local people found the bodies of Md Farhad Hossain, 65, and Rupali Begum, 19, at the shrine around 9:30pm, the SP said. 

On information, police rushed there and saw Farhad lying dead on his bed and Rupali in the kitchen. The teenage girl used to look after Farhad.

The “pir” set up the shrine around 8-10 years ago. He used to organise a religious programme once a week when his followers gathered at the shrine, according to local people. 

Before setting up the shrine, Farhad was involved with the BNP politics and was president of BNP's Bochaganj municipality unit, said Arju Mohammad Sajjad Hossain, officer-in-charge of Bochaganj police.

The bodies will be sent to Dinajpur Medical College for autopsy, the SP said.