Probe report in Sagar-Runi murder case due on July 22
A court here today set July 22 for submitting the investigation report in the sensational murder case of journalist couple Sagar Sarowar and Meherun Runi. This is the 127th extension of the deadline for submitting the probe report in the case. The report was scheduled to be submitted today, but the investigation officer failed to file it.
Dhaka Metropolitan Magistrate Ariful Islam fixed the new date for submitting the report, said Sub-Inspector Rafiqul Islam Russell, officer of the court's General Registration Branch for Mirpur Model Police Station. The journalist couple was brutally murdered at their rented flat in the city's West Rajabazar area on February 11, 2012, in the presence of their four-year-old son, Mahir Sarwar Megh. Runi's brother, Nawser Alam, filed the case with Sher-e-Bangla Nagar Police Station.
Initially, the investigation was entrusted to the Detective Branch (DB) of the Dhaka Metropolitan Police (DMP), but it was later transferred to the Rapid Action Battalion (RAB). RAB failed to submit the investigation report despite taking time extensions on 111 occasions over the past 12 years.
On September 30, 2024, the High Court ordered the Ministry of Home Affairs to form a high-powered task force to investigate the case, removing RAB from the probe. Following the order, the Home Ministry on October 23, 2024, formed a four-member task force to investigate the double murder and submit its findings within six months.
The High Court on April 26, 2026, granted the task force another six months to complete the investigation and submit its report on the killing of the journalist couple.
