Osman Hadi Murder Case: Two Key Suspects Fled To India via Meghalaya Border

New Delhi: Two men wanted in connection with the murder of a prominent Bangladeshi political activist, Osman Hadi, have slipped into India through a border crossing in Meghalaya, police in Dhaka said on Sunday.

What is the Dhaka Metropolitan Police saying?

Bangladesh's Metropolitan Police identified the suspects as Faisal Karim Masud and Alamgir Sheikh.

According to Additional Commissioner SN Nazrul Islam at a press briefing, the pair crossed into India via the Haluaghat border in the Mymensingh region. Local contacts are believed to have helped them once inside Indian territory.

Nazrul said the suspects were met by an associate named Purti. From there, a taxi driver, Sami, is said to have taken them to Tura in Meghalaya. Police are now working to confirm these details.

Are Indian authorities involved in the hunt?

Bangladesh police told reporters they have been in touch with Indian officials through both formal and informal channels. They want the fugitives arrested and extradited back to Dhaka to face charges in Hadi’s killing.

Nazrul said the men who helped the suspects cross the border have been detained by Indian authorities, although this has not yet been officially confirmed.

What triggered this cross-border alert?

Osman Hadi was a vocal political activist in Bangladesh and a fierce critic of both the government and India. He had risen to prominence after helping lead a student protest movement, known as the July Uprising, which led to the fall of the Sheikh Hasina-led government last year. Hadi later formed a political group and planned to stand in national elections.

On December 12, masked gunmen shot Hadi in broad daylight in Dhaka. He was seriously wounded and later flown to Singapore for treatment, where he died six days later. The killing sparked street violence in Dhaka and other cities, with mobs attacking media offices and cultural centres.