A DHAKA court’s decision on June 18 to once again extend the deadline for the submission of police investigation report on the murder of journalist couple Sagar Sarwar and Meherun Runi has deepened the disappointment of the families, further eroding their hope for justice. The couple were found murdered in their flat in Dhaka on February 11, 2012; yet, the police investigation report is still pending. The plaintiff of the case, the brother of Meherun Runi, expressed sheer disappointment when court extended the deadline for 127th time. Meanwhile on April 26, the High Court approved a time petition filed by the task force set up during the interim government. In September 2024, the High Court, considering the failure of the Rapid Action Battalion of the past regime, directed the government to form the high-powered task force composed of experienced personnel of various agencies. Unfortunately, the task force, led by the Police Bureau of Investigation, has already missed deadlines four times and is now set to submit the report in October. The Bangladesh Nationalist Party pledged to strengthen media freedom when it sought office, but fulfilling that promise requires more than rhetoric. It demands a decisive action to resolve the murders of Sagar Sarwar and Meherun Runi, a case that has come to symbolise impunity for crimes against journalists.
The way the task force are justifying its failure to complete the investigation by the deadline is even more disappointing because it relied on the same rhetorical tendency to explain that was used during the deposed Awami League regime. The investigation has changed hands three times since the murders — the Detective Branch stepped in after the police had worked for a couple of days, the Rapid Action Battalion took over in April 2012 and then the high-powered task force has investigated the case. On April 26, more than a year and a half after its formation, a member of the task force told the High Court that it is yet to receive the case docket. In October 2025, the investigators told the court that the officers investigating the case under the Awami regime destroyed evidence. In April 2025, they said that some important case documents were missing and they had sent some evidence for testing to the United States. Instead of providing the victim families with a clear and concrete update on the investigation, the passing of blanket blame on the past regime created grounds for the public to be concerned.
Recognising the importance of the Sagar-Runi murder case for restoring public confidence in the justice system, the government must take decisive steps to expedite the investigation. It should also consider widening the inquiry to identify those who allegedly interfered with and delayed the legal process and ensure accountability in all such cases.
