If don’t get fair trial, I might end my own life: Poet Radhapada Roy

Sanjoy Kumar Barua

“I want a fair trial from the government. My body pain, back pain may go away with ointment, but the pain in my heart will not go away. I am eighty-one years old. How can I show my face to the people when I am beaten mercilessly at this age”, said Radhapada Roy, famous local poet of Bangladesh popularly known as ‘Swabhavkabi’.

“If I don’t get a fair trial, I might end my own life. I feel so sad after the brutal attack on me,” he said in a tearful voice.

“I still don’t understand why I was beaten like this. But the man who beat me had a little argument with his elder brother over family matters seven months ago”, said Radhapada Roy.

“They smeared my mustache and beard with oil and threw me on the ground. Then they brutally hit me on the chest, back”, he said.

Last Saturday morning, poet Radhapada Roy was attacked in a bridge area of ​​Nandanpur Mauza in Nageshwari Upazila of Kurigram District of Bangladesh.

Two brothers in the neighboring area – Md. Rafiqul Islam and Kadur Ali were accused of this attack. The poet was severely beaten with a bamboo stick. He was seriously injured in different parts of his body.

Later, the local people rescued him and admitted him to the Upazila Health Complex.

The poet’s son Jugal Roy filed a case after the attack with local police station.

It is mentioned in the statement of the case that the attack on Radhapada Roy was carried out on Saturday morning by blocking the road in a planned way following previous enmity.

Two brothers Rafiqul Islam and Kadur Ali hit various parts of Kabir’s body with native weapons and fled. Later local people rescued him and took him to Nageshwari Upazila Health Complex. The injured poet is under treatment there.

Nageshwari Police Station Officer-in-Charge (OC) Ashiqur Rahman said, “We are trying our best to arrest the accused. Hope we can arrest them soon.”

“They tried to strangle my father. We want a fair trial of this incident,” said the poet’s son Jugal Roy.

Radhapad Roy, who recites his poems to the villagers, said that he had composed more than 90 spiritual and rural poems in the last eleven years. He is known as a rural poet in his own village and surrounding areas.

About seven years ago he made a rural musical instrument called Rangtal.

Educated up to fifth standard, the poet’s poems are full of ethical and non-communal spirit which spread across the country beyond the boundaries of his region.