DHAKA: The bodies of former union parishad chairman Selim Khan and his son, actor Shanto Khan, have been exhumed from their graves in Chandpur for autopsies, more than two years after their deaths.
The exhumation began around 10am Wednesday (Oct 7) at their family graveyard in Lakshmipur Model Union of Chandpur Sadar upazila, following an order from the Chief Judicial Magistrate's Court.
Additional Superintendent of Police Nadira Noor confirmed the development.
She said the bodies were exhumed in the presence of an executive magistrate following the court order.
Selim Khan was chairman of Lakshmipur Model Union Parishad and president of the union unit of Awami League, whose activities are currently banned. He was also the owner of film production and distribution company Shapla Media. His son Shanto had acted in several films.
Selim was accused of illegally extracting sand from the Padma-Meghna river system in Chandpur using hundreds of dredgers during the Sheikh Hasina government.
He was also accused of irregularities involving land acquisition for Chandpur Science and Technology University, and was widely known as a “sand grabber” in the area.
The Anti-Corruption Commission had filed several cases against him, while a case over alleged tax evasion was also pending. He had served time in jail in connection with some of the allegations.
On the evening of Aug 5, 2024, the day Sheikh Hasina's government fell, Selim and Shanto were reportedly trying to leave the area when they were killed in a mob beating.
Police later filed a case with Chandpur Sadar Model Police Station over the deaths. Based on that case, the court recently ordered that the bodies be exhumed for autopsies. - The Daily Star/ANN
