Body of soldier Titas Sheikh, killed in Teknaf operation, being taken to his Faridpur village home for burial with state honours

The body of soldier Titas Sheikh, who was shot dead during a joint forces operation against human traffickers in Teknaf, Cox's Bazar, is being taken to his village home in Nagarkanda, Faridpur. After the army's formalities on Friday (November 6), the body was expected to reach home, where he will be buried in the family graveyard following janaza prayers.

On Thursday afternoon, law enforcement agencies launched an anti-trafficking joint operation in the remote hills of Rangikhali village under Hnila union in Teknaf. Based on intelligence, Border Guard Bangladesh (BGB) and police took part in the operation led by the army's 10 Infantry Division.

According to related sources, more than a hundred Bangladeshis and Rohingya had been abducted and held at a secret hideout in the hills for trafficking, and the joint forces had information that they were being tortured there. During the operation, members of the trafficking gang opened fire on the forces, and Titas Sheikh, a soldier of the army's 1 Bir unit, was shot.

According to the Inter Services Public Relations (ISPR), Titas Sheikh was shot at around 4:30pm on Thursday and was first given primary treatment at the Leda IRC Rohingya Hospital. As his condition deteriorated, he was taken to Ramu Combined Military Hospital (CMH) for better treatment, where doctors in the emergency department declared him dead at 8:48pm.

In the operation, 57 people held hostage were rescued. Five people were detained, and arms and ammunition were also recovered.

The joint forces' operation in the hill area continued on Friday morning, with members working to identify others involved with the trafficking gang and bring them under the law. Cox's Bazar Superintendent of Police ANM Sajedur Rahman said the army, police and BGB were conducting operations at the scene and in surrounding areas, that traffickers would be given no quarter, and that the operation would continue until terrorist activities were eliminated.

Titas Sheikh was posted at the Rangikhali army camp in Teknaf. He was a resident of Laskardia village in Faridpur's Nagarkanda upazila. He came from an army family — his father is a retired soldier and his younger brother also serves in the army. He was the eldest of two brothers and a sister, and he joined the Bangladesh Army as a soldier in 2017.

Visiting his home in Laskardia village on Friday morning, his mother Rekha Begum was found wailing in grief, while his wife Sumaiya Akter was speechless at losing her husband. His father, too, could not speak, only shedding tears. News of his death cast a shadow of mourning over the family, relatives and locals.

Family sources said Titas Sheikh married about four years ago and had no children. He had planned to take his wife to his place of posting this coming December.

Wailing for her husband, wife Sumaiya Akter cried, "Take me with you too, how will I live! I have no existence left! Allah, what will I do now."

Mother Rekha Begum said she last spoke to her son on Wednesday night. Titas had told her, "Tomorrow (Thursday) afternoon I will go on an operation against the terrorists — pray for me, mother." She had no inkling that those would be his last words.

The body was at Ramu CMH, and his younger brother, soldier Akram Hossain, had rushed there to bring it home. Nagarkanda Upazila Nirbahi Officer (UNO) Rezwana Afrin said, "The army has informed us that after the army formalities, the body will arrive by helicopter at 3:20pm. Formalities including a guard of honour with state honours will then be completed at the village home by 4pm. Burial will follow according to the family's decision."

Nagarkanda Police Station Officer-in-Charge Rasul Samdani said they had received news of soldier Titas Sheikh's death. Once the body reaches the village home, he will be buried in the family graveyard after janaza, he said.

Meanwhile, the ISPR expressed deep grief over Titas Sheikh's death. In a condolence message, it said the Bangladesh Army remembers with deep respect the sacrifice of this young soldier while serving the motherland, and prayed for his departed soul while conveying sympathy to the bereaved family.