Dbarta24 Report — In a seemingly endless wait for justice, the submission of the investigation report in the high-profile Sagar-Runi double murder case has been delayed once again.
With the Police Bureau of Investigation (PBI) failing to present its findings today, a Dhaka court has rescheduled the deadline to November 5. This marks the 130th time the submission date for the report has been extended in the 14-year-old case.
The order was passed on Wednesday by Dhaka Metropolitan Magistrate Ariful Islam after the investigating agency requested additional time. Sub-Inspector Rafiqul Islam of the Dhaka Metropolitan Police (DMP) Prosecution Department confirmed the court’s decision.
Over a Decade Without Answers
Journalist couple Sagar Sarowar, news editor at Machranga Television, and Meherun Runi, senior reporter at ATN Bangla, were brutally murdered in their rented apartment in West Rajabazar, Dhaka, on February 11, 2012.
Following the gruesome killings, Runi’s brother, Nousher Alam, filed a murder case at the Sher-e-Bangla Nagar Police Station. Despite immense public outrage and repeated assurances from authorities over the years, law enforcement agencies have yet to uncover the motive or finalize the charge sheet.
Multiple Agencies, Zero Breakthroughs
The case has shuffled through several high-profile law enforcement agencies over the last decade without any decisive breakthrough:
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Sher-e-Bangla Nagar Police: Handled the preliminary probe immediately following the crime.
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Detective Branch (DB): Took over the investigation after initial delays by local police.
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Rapid Action Battalion (RAB): Assigned to the probe by court order after DB expressed inability to solve the case. RAB spent over 12 years investigating without submitting a final report.
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Police Bureau of Investigation (PBI): Handed responsibility for the case late last year, officially taking over case files from RAB in November.
Despite the transition to PBI, progress remains stalled. As the report entry date passes the 130-mark milestone, the victim’s family and the national journalist community continue their long, agonizing wait for answers and accountability.