Nijhum Majumdar
The life of Joseph-Haris-Anis-Aziz-Tipu and their three sisters, their father Mr Wadud and mother Renuja Begum have started with a nightmare in this capital city - Dhaka. Mr Wadud was a senior employee of Bangladesh Biman. He took a loan from the house building and sold some of his land in the village to buy a two-storey house in Mohammadpur in Dhaka to support his family. The story revolves through the late eighties or early nineties. The house was occupied. The entire family was on the streets with its children. The second brother Aziz was most likely a captain or a major right with a posting out of Dhaka. Their father went to the village to sell some lands to pay off part of the loan. This is exactly the story of the occupation of their house. Joseph started living in this city, just like you and me. Joseph himself was an impossibly good student. Aziz joined the Bangladesh Army by dint of his own merit. He started building his career in the force. Their elder brother Anis tried to raise the entire family with his father. Harris also had his little involvement in politics. He was trying to create a berth in this city. Tipu was the quiet and talented member of the family, who was also a little emotional in characteristics. He got married when he was a higher secondary student.
The entire family had to live on the streets as the house was occupied. Army officer Aziz was helpless as he was working for the government. The other brothers were trying to uphold the family. It was around 1991 or 92. Morshed, the top terrorist in Mohammadpur, stabbed Joseph in the back without any solid reason. Joseph did not commit any crime. He did not ‘respect’ some gang members of Morshed. So, that was the beginning. Joseph then gradually entered the politics of Bangladesh Chhatra League (BCL) and it was the period of BNP rule. Joseph was involved in BCL activities while Haris wanted to settle down in Juba League politics, and their elder brother Anis was struggling to pull the family out of the troubles. And the second brother was in the army. Morshed staged all his power during the BNP rule. Joseph was harassed in all respects, either beaten in the street or smashing the head from the back, while Haris was unable to pass nights at home. The stabbing in the nineties injured Joseph seriously which also damaged his lungs. He had to carry the suffering pain for a long time even in the jail. He still suffers the pain. Furthermore, the members of the Morshed group attacked him from behind and injured his head with an iron rod. His head was severely injured. But he survived.
One evening Morshed and his gang members attacked Joseph's house in Mohammadpur. None of the brothers were at home then. Morshed and his gang turned the house of Mr. Wadud into a hellhole through a tremendous amount of gun fire. Unfortunately, Mr. Wadud and his family did not have any justice during the regime of BNP. At that time, Salu, Setu and many other inferior activists of BNP were more influential.
In 1993, Mr. Wadud died. Joseph, Anis, Haris, Aziz, and Tipu lost their shade from over their head. The entire family was in hot water. This social reality, cruel people, politics, and harsh life have brought Joseph in to a life of vengeance. Joseph lost all the hopes and ways. He was helpless. So, he hit back for his survival. Haris did the same. They did not want to escape anymore. They refused to be oppressed. Their sisters were unable to go to school. Their home was attacked frequently, police raided as and when they wanted. The entire family, in fact, was restless.
Suddenly one day, Joseph’s elder brother Anis opened a mosquito stand from a bed and started beating him. The only thing he said was why Joseph got involved in all this? Who told him to do politics? Joseph – whom we see in this story- was born again. At present, you have named him as terrorist Joseph. But those of us who grew up in Mohammadpur, Adabar and Shyamli, where our roots lie, we know the story of this family. We know this family very well.
Joseph endured torture, experienced the cruelty of life. The man who was always in touch with family members, could not sleep alone at night - had learned to hit back. He hit for his survival.
Mr. Anis was out of Dhaka for business. But his name was enlisted in the murder of Mustafiz. The most respected brother in this family has been accused as a criminal. Later he was arrested in the case. Sheikh Hasina's man? Ha ha ha. It makes us laugh. All three brothers were arrested in 1996 and the charge sheet was also given against them. At one stage, his elder brother Anis was also harassed for some times, suspecting him as Mosleh Uddin, the murderer of Bangabandhu. And like a nightmare, Haji Maqbool, the then influential Member of Parliament for the region, had been behind the family since its birth. In 1999, during the Awami League regime, the top terror Emon killed Tipu, who was the most talented and calm boy in the family. Tipu’s dead body lay on the street. A name pops up in the mind - Bihari Javed. Javed was the informer against Tipu. He informed where Tipu goes, how he meets Joseph and other details of their family. But did we protest against this murder? No. We don’t because Tipu is the brother of Joseph. Joseph is in our mind with a negative impression. There had been no trial of Tipu murder.
Why did a talented boy like Joseph start walking in this thorny street? Why did the peace-loving boy turn into a man of revenge? Have we ever thought about that? Joseph, seeing the oppression and injustice on this family, had been forced to step on this path- a fact we are actually afraid to admit. This so-called skepticism prevents us from finding the truth.
The man who could not eat alone, the man who could not live alone, the man who hugged his sister being afraid when it was dark, also had to step into the dark life. He had to spend 22 years in prison.
Aziz Ahmed came from a struggling family. He has worked in the Bangladesh Army with devotion for so many years of his life. He was also promoted during the BNP rule and again during the Awami League rule. The commoners need to salute him for his outstanding success amid such a crisis in life. But they did not do so. Instead, they think why would Joseph's brother be the army chief? This is the most asked question of most of our people. It figures out that this society will create a Joseph but it will not allow an Aziz to be created. This corrupt society is very cruel and ugly.
This family had to go through so much darkness but after all, the brothers surrounded this family with all their compassion. The sisters of this family have been educated in higher education. Anis, the eldest son of this family, had to run away for a long time without committing any crime, bearing the liabilities of a fabricated case. The man who was not present at the time of the incident also became the accused in the murder case. Well, how can anyone say – after receiving nine bullet shots - that Haris shot him from his licensed pistol? In fact, it is not possible to say even if someone receives one bullet injury that if the shot was fired from a licensed pistol or an illegal pistol. In the last breath of life, it is not possible to deliver the perfect description of the murder or to explain who had killed him. Moreover, when Mostafiz was killed, he had a revolver in his waist. How can that happen? And how did Joseph shoot him with that revolver? Was that revolver legal? Did not Joseph take his own revolver for the killing? Was Joseph going to kill in empty hands like film heroes? There are so many questions …I will bring the answers one after another. Waiting to get the case copies. Once I have started telling the story, I will end it. Why will people know half of the story? Let me share the entire thing. Everyone needs to know the story of how the Anis got trapped, how Joseph or Haris became known as terrorists.
(All the statements in this article are solely the views of the author)
