By Syed Altefat Hossain

The belongings of promising freelancer Sajidur Rohman Omor, who embraced martyrdom in 2024 July Uprising, is now nothing but holds only memories of him to his family. His family members find his existence in the belongings he left behind.

While visiting their rented house in the Dogair Bazar area of Demra, this correspondent found his laptop, visiting card, professional ID card, passport and a certificate of recognition to his excellence in IT work kept on the table, in which he used to do freelancing work.

Omor’s elder brother Sirajul Islam (24), a third year (honors) student at Shaikh Burhanuddin Post Graduate College in the city, is now using his laptop. Showing those belongings, Sirajul said he feels his younger brother’s existence whenever he opens the laptop as many pictures of Omor are saved in the computer.

“It is my brother’s laptop. He used to do freelancing using this computer. He was an expert in graphic design, networking and security issues,” Sirajul said tearfully, showing the laptop.

Omor succumbed to his bullet injury -- which he sustained on July 21 when the law enforcement agencies launched a heavy crackdown on the student-people uprising -- on July 24 while undergoing treatment at the intensive care unit (ICU) of the National Burn Institute. Thus, a promising life was cut short at his death.

Sirajul said they were vocal against injustice, corruption, oppression on the people carried out by the then autocratic government. “We had been active in the student movement since the beginning of the quota reform campaign. We wished for the success of the movement to get rid of the injustice. Therefore, we all joined the movement,” he said.

Sirajul recalled that the anti-discrimination student movement eventually turned into the student-people uprising with the participation of the people from all strata when police opened fire indiscriminately at the protesters from July 17.

But the irony of fate is that, though the movement succeeded in ousting the nearly 16 years of autocratic rule on August 5, Omor could not witness the victory of the cause he fought for.

Sirajul and his brother Omor joined the street movement in the Kajla area on Demra road separately on July 19 when members of law enforcement agencies were firing indiscriminately at the protesters.

“On July 19, I found Omor chanting slogans in the Kajla area. Seeing him, I was very scared as there was indiscriminate firing on the street. Many people embraced martyrdom in front of me while many people were taken to hospital with critical bullet injuries,” he recalled.

Later, he and his elder sister Mahbuba Akter strongly barred him from joining the street protest.

“When my elder sister debarred Omor from joining the demonstration, he replied to her, ‘Bullets pass through my side, but don’t hit me. If any bullet hits me, it will be a great matter. I will be a martyr’,” Sirajul recalled Omor's determination to the cause he fought for.

He said Omor was in the movement at Jatrabari area around 1pm on July 21 when the Supreme Court’s Appellate Division announced the verdict over the quota system in government jobs.

“But around 1.30pm, someone came to our house and informed my family members that Omor sustained bullet injury on Jatrabari-Demra road. At that time I was at Jatrabari too. When I tried to confirm his whereabouts, I came to know that he was taken to Dhaka Medical (hospital),” Sirajul recalled the time when he got the devastating news.

Sirajul said he directly went to the Dhaka Medical College Hospital (DMCH) from Jatrabari and found his younger brother on life support with a bandage on his head while he was totally senseless. But doctors were not confirm whether the bullets were lodged inside or exited through the other side.

“The doctors told us that after observing Omor for some time, they would take a decision over the next course of action. However, in the afternoon, doctors asked us to manage blood for him,” grief stricken Sirajul said.

In the later part of the day, Omor was shifted to the ICU of the National Burn Institute where he was undergoing treatment until he breathed his last in the morning on July 24, he added.

On July 21, Sirajul recalled, the doctors conducted a CT scan and confirmed that the bullet exited from the head and said Omor was not in a stable condition to undergo surgery as his skull was divided into two pieces. If he survives, they would think of taking him for surgery.

“My brother finally breathed his last in the morning of July 24. Following the postmortem, we received the body on the same day we brought him here,” Sirajul said in a composed tone while he was trying to control his emotion.

He said after the first namaj-e-janaza of Omor at Dogair area, they took his body to their ancestral home in Bijoynagar Upazila of Brahmanbaria. Later, Omor was laid to eternal rest at the family graveyard on July 25 following his second namaj-e-janaza there.

Omor was youngest among four children of Md Shahajahan (55), former small businessman, and Mst Parvin Akter (45), a housewife.

His elder two sisters- Mahbuba Akter Hasna and Mahfuza Akter Sumi, are married while his only brother is Sirajul.

Omor’s death was just not the loss of a family member, who was a victim of a mindless killing spree. It was something more as it exposed the family to a state of total wilderness – emotionally as well as financially.

According to his family members, Omor had a dream of going abroad. Hence, he was pursuing different courses to enhance his professional skills. He made his passport in 2023. In the meantime, Omor established an IT firm where he was serving as the manager while he was also serving a broadband firm as a freelancer.

Sirajul said his younger brother didn’t continue his academic study after passing Junior Dakhil Certificate (JDC) exams in 2020 from Sunna Tengra Dakhil Madrasah in Demra; rather he started freelancing after obtaining skills in IT. Earlier, he studied at a primary school up to class five. Then he was admitted to a Hafezi Madrasah where he memorized 16 paras (chapters) of the Holy Quran.

Omor’s grief stricken father, Shahajahan, said in a sobbing tone, “We are bewildered by losing our youngest son. He was dearest to us. He was a devoted son especially to his mother”.

His mother is still traumatized and cannot return to normal life, Shahajahan said. But this correspondent could not talk to Parvin Akter as she was not at home.

“As I am now unable to work due to illness, Omor was the main earning member of our family. But his death caused financial hardship to us as our elder son Sirajul is still studying in honors third year and can’t join any work,” Shahajahan said.

He also said that now it has become difficult for them to pay the house rent.

Shahajahan, however, thanked the July Shaheed Smrity Foundation to stand beside the families of those, who embraced martyrdom in the uprising.

Requesting the countrymen to pray for the departed soul of Omor, Shahajahan demanded capital punishment of the killers.