Staff Reporter:
Prince was very popular among the people of Southpur village in Rajapur upazila, Jhalakathi as he tried to stand beside them whenever they needed any kind of support. His sudden demise has naturally shocked and traumatised the villagers.
Prince always tried his best to help the common people, said many villagers who participated in his Namaz-E-Janaza at the family ancestral home on Thursday morning.
Six members of Prince’s family died in a road accident on Wednesday afternoon in Gabkhan Toll Plaza area of Jhalakathi Sadar upazila along the Barishal-Khulna highway.
The dead were: Hasibur Rahman Prince, 32, his wife Sonia Akter, 25, his two children Takia and Tahmid, his sister-in-law Ripa Akter and his brother-in-law Al Emran.
Prince’s four family members were buried side-by-side in his village while his two in-laws were brought to their respective villages under the same upazila.
“It was very painful to lay down the four members of Prince’s family in their graves at the same time. We could not endure the sight, but there is nothing to do,” said Abdul Barek, a relative of Prince in the village.
Prince, a private job holder, facilitated employment for around 150 jobless youths from his village, said Abdul Barek. If any youth asked Prince for a job, he would try to arrange for one as soon as possible, Abdul Barek added.
Prince also operated some businesses with the local youths.
“We feel quite helpless now having lost Prince – our all-weather dependable man. We got all kinds suggestions and help from him, and he never showed indifference towards us,” said Sajol, a youth of the village who got support from Prince.
No one is left in Prince’s family to uphold his legacy, said another villager Mamun Mridha, adding that villagers themselves would now take up the job of keeping his name alive.
The six deceased persons were in a private car when a truck crushed it.
“We all want to see justice done against the truck driver for killing these innocent people,” said the emphatic villagers.
A case was filed on Thursday against the truck driver Alamin Howlader and his helper, said Shahidul Islam, the officer in charge of Jhalakathi police station.
“The driver has explained that the truck’s hydraulic pipe, used for controlling the brake functionality, was damaged,” the police officer said adding that relevant experts would investigate if there really was a technical fault in the vehicle.
Local lawmaker Ameer Hossen Amu visited the spot of the accident, and the injured people at hospital on Thursday.
