Seven Bangladeshi Workers Killed in Saudi Fire Buried in Atrai

Bangla Press Desk:  A combined funeral service has been held in Naogaon’s Atrai Upazila for seven expatriate workers who were among the 16 Bangladeshis killed in a fire in Saudi Arabia.

The funeral was held at 10am on Friday at the Molla Azad Memorial Government College grounds in the Sadar Upazila. In attendance were the local member of parliament, the deputy commissioner, relatives and hundreds of people from all walks of life.

Before the funeral began, the bodies were placed side by side.

Guffar Pramanik, father of deceased brothers Mohan and Sumon from Gandagohali village in the Upazila, said: “My two sons died together in the fire in Saudi Arabia’s Riyadh. This may be Allah’s decree. Please, everyone, pray for their forgiveness.”

He said, “I took out loans to send my two children abroad. How will I able to manage that debt now?”

The air was heavy with tears, mourning, and prayers.

Muhaddes Mufti Ruhul Amin of Santahar Jamia Arabia Madrasa in Bogura led the funeral prayer. Naogaon-6 (Atrai and Raninagar) MP Sheikh Md Rezaul Islam, Naogaon Deputy Commissioner Mohammad Saiful Islam, Atrai Upazila executive officer (UNO) Md Moniruzzaman and others local leaders.

After the funeral prayer, the bodies of the dead were taken to their respective villages.

Another funeral prayer for four victims from Gandagohali was held at their village at 3pm. They were later buried in graves dug in a row at the graveyard.

On Aug 9, 16 Bangladeshi workers were killed in a terrible fire at a sofa-making factory in Riyadh. The identities of nine of the victims were confirmed through fingerprint tests by Saudi authorities.

Seven of them turned out to hail from Atrai Upazila. They were identified as Mohan Ali and his younger brother Sumon Ali, Rubel Pramanik and Kalimuddin Islam of Gandagohali village, Md Farid of Udanpoi village, Sohel Rana of Dubai village, and Abdul Jalil Sarkar of Parkasunda village.

Two others were identified as Rabiul Islam of Mahishdanga village in Natore’s Naldanga Upazila and Shyamol Uddin Majhi of Morugram Dangapara village in Rajshahi’s Bagmara Upazila.

The bodies of the nine victims reached Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport on board a Biman Bangladesh Airlines flight at 4:30pm on Thursday.

As the seven remaining bodies have yet to be identified, it is still uncertain when they will return home. The families are urging authorities to return them as quickly as possible.

Parul Bibi is the mother of Minhaj, who hailed from Madhya Bowali village in Atrai Upazila and is also believed to have died in the fire. She said, “The body of my son has not been identified. That is why it will be sent later. We are asking the government to send the body our son quickly. Everything is over for us.”

Ankhi Begum, the wife of the deceased Rubel, said: “The father of my one-month-old baby is gone. My life has grown dark just as I saw the light of happiness.”

She demanded an investigation into the factory fire as well as compensation for the families of all the deceased.

Naogaon Deputy Commissioner Saiful said, “The process to identify the six remaining residents of Naogaon who died in the fire and repatriate their bodies is underway.

“Efforts are being made to identify them through DNA testing. Once this process is completed, initiatives will be taken to repatriate the bodies.”

He gave assurances of providing necessary assistance for the rehabilitation of the victims’ families.

In addition, local MP Rezaul also gave assurances that he would stand by them and provide compensation to the families.