Thakurgaon Correspondent:
After the seizure, 3 out of 16 cows raised by the police died due to the negligence of the police station. The cow owners alleged that after recovering the 16 stolen cows, the police demanded money from the cow owners. As the demanded money could not be paid, the cows were not given adequate food and care. Due to which 3 cows died.
On Saturday (February 22), cow owners gathered at Thakurgaon Sadar Police Station and broke down in tears, demanding the immediate return of their live cows. They also demanded compensation for the dead cows. This has now reached the court.
It is known from the allegations in the case that on January 22, 2025, 16 cattle (cows) were seized by local residents in Thakurgaon district town and handed over to the Sadar Thana Police. Later, the Sadar Thana Police approached the court on January 23 to identify the owner of the cows. Based on the allegations, the court assigned the responsibility to Dr. Md. Saidur Rahman, Animal Resources Officer of Sadar Upazila, to investigate and confirm the ownership. At the same time, Senior Judicial-1 Court Judge Md. Mahbubur Rahman ordered the investigating officer to appoint a person to take care of the seized cows as there was no cattle shed in the district town.
Many people have already appealed to the Sadar Police Station to find the missing cow.
The cow owners' complaint was confirmed by the police, and the investigating officer, SI Nur Jamal, went to the cow owner's house and demanded a large bribe. However, when the owner refused to pay the bribe, the investigating officer became angry. The delay in returning the cow began.
On the other hand, on the court's orders, Sadar Upazila Animal Resources Officer Dr. Md. Saidur Rahman confirmed the ownership of three people of the 16 cows and submitted a report on February 13.
The owners are Mahadev Chandra Ghosh, son of Sachindra Nath Ghosh, a resident of Ghoshpara in the district town. Nazrul Islam, son of the deceased Elias of this village, and Babul, son of Abdur Rahman, a resident of Sarkarpara.
On the day the report was submitted, the court ordered the police to submit another report. And as soon as that report was submitted, the police started to beg. As a result, the cows fell ill day after day due to neglect and carelessness under the open sky. Three cows died one after another. Their market value was about seven lakh taka. The rest of the cows are also dying.
Despite repeated reports of such incidents, the police were unable to find a solution. Finding no solution, the cow owners and locals appeared at the Sadar police station on Saturday afternoon and demanded compensation of seven lakh taka, the value of the three dead cows, in addition to resolving the matter. Anger arose.
The cow's owner, Sabina Khatun, said her only foreign cross-breed cow was the only support for their family. The cow used to give 18 to 20 liters of milk every day. On the 22nd of last month, the police brought it to the police station as an orphan.
She also said, "This cow used to pay for the education of my sick husband and two children. Now it's all over. I have gone to the police many times, but they have demanded a lot of money from me on various pretexts. First, they demanded 50,000 taka for cow food, then 1.5 lakh taka and finally 3 lakh taka. We are poor people, where will we get so much money?"
Old woman Tulon Begum said, crying, "The cow gave birth to a calf a few days ago. Now without its mother's milk, that calf too may die." They want justice.
Not only Sabina Khatun, but Bablu, a resident of Sarkar Para in the city, said that his family has 5 cows in police custody. Out of these, 1 cow died today. Shri Mahadev Chandra Ghosh of nearby Ghosh Para said that his ten cows are also in police custody. Out of these, two cows died. The market value of the two cows is more than three lakh taka.
The district media workers rushed to the spot after receiving the news. As soon as they took pictures, Sadar Police Station OC Shahidur Rahman became angry. When asked questions, he started behaving rudely.
When the matter came to light, Additional Superintendent of Police (Sadar Circle) Mithun Sarkar went to the spot to calm the situation and assured that the matter would be resolved.
Meanwhile, Superintendent of Police (Sadar Circle) Mithun Sarkar said that the matter of the death of the animals due to police negligence is being investigated. Action will be taken later.
Thakurgaon Sadar Upazila Livestock Officer Saidur Rahman said, "We verified the real owners of 16 cows and submitted a report on the 13th. We were not informed about the cows dying due to illness."
Thakurgaon Police Superintendent Sheikh Jahidul Islam said, "I have heard about the matter. Steps will be taken to return the cows to the owners as soon as possible." He admitted that the cows were treated but still died. On the other hand, he said that the matter of disrespectful behavior towards journalists is a personal matter of the OC.
Md. Nazmul Hossain
