Toufiq Nawaz Buried in Banani as Dipu Moni Returns to Jail

Senior Supreme Court lawyer Barrister Toufiq Nawaz, husband of former minister and Awami League leader Dr Dipu Moni, was buried at Banani Graveyard in Dhaka on Thursday. He was laid to rest beside the grave of his mother, Khairun Nessa.

Dipu Moni, who had been released on parole to attend her husband’s funeral, was present at the burial. Their daughter, Dipanbita Nawaz, placed soil on her father’s grave. A prayer was held after the burial, with Banani Graveyard Mosque imam Maulana Omar Faruk leading the supplication. Dipu Moni and other family members and attendees took part in the prayer.

The burial brought together the final stages of the funeral arrangements for the veteran lawyer, who had served as a senior advocate at the country’s highest court. For Dipu Moni, the occasion also marked a brief return to family life amid her ongoing detention.

After her husband was buried, Dipu Moni visited the grave of her father, MA Wadud, at the same cemetery. Wadud was among the founding figures of the Awami League. She spent some time at his grave before being escorted back to the prison vehicle.

As rain fell in Dhaka, Dipu Moni was placed in a prison van following the visit. Her parole was granted for 12 hours, with the period scheduled to end at 6pm. She was then taken back to Munshiganj District Jail, where she remains in custody in connection with several cases filed following the 2024 movement.

Dipu Moni was released from Munshiganj District Jail early on Thursday so that she could attend her husband’s funeral. At around 6.15am, she was transported to Dhaka in a prison van under tight police security. She reached her residence in Kalabagan at about 8.15am.

Security was maintained around the house during her brief stay. Police officers were seen checking people entering the premises, reflecting the heightened security arrangements surrounding her movement.

Shortly after 12.15pm, a freezer van carrying Toufiq Nawaz’s body left for Azad Mosque in Gulshan, where the funeral prayer was scheduled to take place after the midday prayer. Dipu Moni was taken there soon afterwards in a separate prison van.

During the funeral prayer, she remained inside the prison vehicle outside the mosque. After the prayer ended, she was allowed to leave the van and see her husband for the final time. The moment was marked by an emotional atmosphere among those present.

At around 2pm, Dipu Moni was taken from Azad Mosque to Banani Graveyard for the burial. Once the burial and prayers were completed, she visited her father’s grave before being escorted back to the prison van.

The vehicle subsequently left Banani for Munshiganj District Jail. Her return marked the end of the temporary parole granted specifically to enable her to attend the final rites of her husband.

The sequence of events meant that Dipu Moni was able to take part in the key stages of the funeral — from accompanying her husband’s body to the funeral prayer and attending the burial to visiting her father’s grave — before returning to custody within the stipulated parole period.