The High Court on Wednesday ordered the reburial of Harris Chowdhury, a former political secretary to Bangladesh Nationalist Party chairperson Khaleda Zia, at his preferred site with full honours as a freedom fighter.
The decision follows DNA test results that confirmed the identity of his remains, dispelling lingering doubts about his death.
The bench of Justice Fahmida Khatun and Justice Mubina Asaf issued the order after reviewing the DNA findings.
Harris Chowdhury’s daughter, Samira Tanzin Chowdhury, filed a writ petition over the issue.
The DNA test, conducted after the exhumation of a body buried under the alias ‘Mahmudur Rahman’ in Savar, conclusively matched Harris Chowdhury’s genetic profile with that of his daughter.
His remains were exhumed on October 16, 2024, from the Jamia Khatamun Graveyard at Birulia in Savar, under court orders and tight security.
His daughter Samira said, ‘The outgoing authoritarian regime fabricated confusion about my father’s death, and media reports perpetuated that uncertainty. As part of his family, this ambiguity has been deeply painful. The court’s intervention has finally allowed us to seek closure.’
Harris Chowdhury, who had reportedly gone into hiding to evade government persecution, passed away on September 3, 2021, at Evercare Hospital in Dhaka after contracting Covid-19.
He was jailed for varying terms including one for life-term in two cases for murders and hurling explosives during the grenade attacks on an Awami League rally in the capital on August 21, 2004.
According to the petitioner’s lawyer, Mahdin Chowdhury, Harris’ death was concealed under pressure from the then-government, and he was buried in a madrassah graveyard in Savar under the false identity of ‘Mahmudur Rahman.’
The government at the time neither issued a death certificate under his real name nor accorded him the recognition due as a freedom fighter.
Media reports in September 2021 revealed Harris Chowdhury’s alleged secret burial.
This disclosure sparked public speculation and led to inconsistent claims about his death, including rumours that he had passed away in London.
Samira later clarified that her father had stayed in Bangladesh, living a life of religious devotion as an imam and preacher for the Tabligh.
On September 5, 2024, the same High Court bench ordered the exhumation of the body for DNA testing in response to Samira’s writ petition.
The test results, submitted to the court, conclusively identified the remains as those of Harris Chowdhury.
Samira sought court intervention to end public harassment and provide her family with closure.
‘People still ask, ‘Did he really pass away?’ This uncertainty has been agonising for us,’ she said.
Harris Chowdhury, a freedom fighter, had expressed his desire to be buried with due honour.
The High Court’s decision enables his family to fulfil this wish, closing a painful chapter in their lives.
source: NEW AGE