‘He cannot be my son’

Appalled by his son's role in Thursday's militant attack at the country's largest Eid congregation in Sholakia, Sirajul Islam now refuses to recognise Abir Rahman as his son.

“One who can attack people offering prayers cannot be my son,” said a heartbroken Sirajul referring to his 23-year-old son Abir, who was killed in a gunfight with police while carrying out the attack in Kishoreganj that day.

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Sirajul, who works at a private firm, refused to receive the body of his son.

Yesterday, these correspondents went to Sirajul's apartment in the capital's Bashundhara. But he refused to talk to them in person. Later, he replied to queries from them over the intercom at the apartment building.

Abir was an introvert boy in childhood. He hardly had any friends, said Sirajul who is from Comilla.

“I could not even imagine that I have to go through such agony…”

How Abir, the youngest among four brothers, got involved in militancy is still a mystery to Sirajul.

He said Abir, a BBA student at North South University, had been missing for the last four months.

The Daily Star tried to contact Belal Ahmed, spokesperson for the university, for comments in this regard but couldn't reach him.

Sirajul filed a general diary with the capital's Bhatara Police Station the day before the Eid-ul-Fitr.

Abir's family and relatives came to know about his death through social media and news reports on TV channels.

Abir's family has been living at Bashundhara for the last one and a half years. He grew up at Baridhara DOHS where the family lived for many years.

He used to offer prayers regularly since his childhood, Sirajul mentioned.

At the beginning of March, Abir suddenly decided to go to Malaysia for studies. But the family members disagreed with him and tried to persuade him to change his mind.

They even proposed making arrangements for him to study in Australia or Canada, where two of his brothers live.

But Abir was adamant, and said that unlike Canada and Australia, Malaysia is a Muslim-dominated country, recalled Sirajul. 

“We had an argument over the issue on February 29, and the following day he left home without saying anything to anyone.”

Abir was alone at home that day, Sirajul said adding that the family was quite sure he had left for Malaysia.

But following the Holey Artisan attack, fear and suspicion grew among the family members as some of the attackers were found to have been missing for months.

Sirajul then decided to file the GD about his missing son.

Asked why the family didn't do that earlier, Sirajul said they thought he had left home out of anger and that he would return.

“It was beyond my thoughts that he chose such a hateful path.” Sirajul claimed that he found nothing suspicious in Abir's behaviour.

He called upon all parents to keep a close watch on their children. “I wish no father would suffer like me,” he said.

Md Suman, a caretaker of the 10-storey apartment building, said Abir used to ride a white bicycle, which has been lying idle at a corner of the garage since the beginning of March.

Nurul Muttakin, officer-in-charge of Bhatara Police Station, said Sirajul mentioned in the GD that his son had been missing since March this year.

Talking to BBC Bangla Service yesterday evening, Abir's elder brother Ashiqur Rahman said his family members had no idea about his younger brother's activities on Facebook or other social networking sites.