Fakhrul lands in jail again after 4 months
A Dhaka court sent BNP Acting Secretary General Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir to jail on his surrender in connection with three cases for violence while another court issued arrest warrants against 35 BNP leaders and activists in a murder case on Tuesday.
Complying with the Supreme Court order, Mirza Fakhrul surrendered before the court of Metropolitan Magistrate Md Maruf Hossain at around 2:30pm and filed three bail petitions in three cases for violence. But the court rejected the bail prayers and passed the order to send him to jail.
However, the court directed the prison authorities to consider his physical condition and ensure proper treatment for him.
Earlier on Monday, the Supreme Court (SC) had directed Mirza Fakhrul to surrender before the lower court after hearing three petitions filed by him seeking an extension of the court order that granted him bail in the cases.
On June 21, the High Court (HC) granted ad-interim bail to the BNP leader in the cases and also issued three separate rules upon the government to explain as to why he should not be granted regular bail in the cases.On July 13, the SC granted a six-week bail to the BNP leader on medical grounds, clearing the way for his release from jail. The apex court also directed him to surrender before the lower court after six weeks.
On August 31, the SC again extended the bail order for six weeks more. On October 6, it further extended until Monday its bail order for Fakhrul on medical grounds.
The BNP leader has been made accused in 89 cases so far. On January 6, plainclothes police arrested Fakhrul from in front of the National Press Club in the capital.
Over six months after his arrest, he had been released from jail on bail on July 14 on health grounds. After being released from the jail, the BNP leader received medical treatment in Singapore and the US for nearly two months.
On October 17, he again went to Singapore for three days for treatment as he has been suffering from various health conditions.
The BNP has expressed concern over sending Fakhrul to jail and said his health is at risk. At a press conference at party’s Naya Paltan office, the BNP spokesperson Asaduzzaman Ripon also demanded release of detained BNP leaders and activists.
Meanwhile, a Dhaka court on Tuesday issued arrest warrants against 35 leaders and activists of the BNP-led alliance, including BNP Standing Committee member Gayeshwar Chandra Roy, in a case filed under the Explosive Substances Act.
Warrants have also been issued against BNP leaders Sadeque Hossain Khoka, Aman Ullah Aman, Shalauddin Ahamed, Shafiqul Islam Badsha and Habibur Rashid Habib.
Metropolitan Sessions Judge Md Kamrul Hossain Mollah issued the arrest warrants after accepting the charge sheet against 35 leaders and activists of the BNP and the Jamaat-Shibir in the case.
The court issued the arrest warrants as the accused did not appear before the court during Tuesday’s hearing in the case.
The court also directed the officer-in-charge (OC) of Rampura Police Station to submit report by January 27, 2016 on execution of the arrest warrants in the case.
A case was filed with Rampura police station over the killing of Chhatra Shibir leader Mansur Rahman Padhania during the BNP-led alliance’s march for democracy programme on December 29, 2013.
On December 30, sub-inspector Md Al Mamun filed a murder case with Rampura Police station against the leaders and activists and unnamed 100/150 people.
On March 20 this year, Sub-inspector Md Mamunur Rashid, also the investigation officer of the case submitted two charge sheets against 49 accused to the Dhaka chief metropolitan magistrate’s court in the case.
